Your Arduino Cloud "Things" Can Now Integrate Into Google Home

Arduino has announced that the Arduino Cloud has been extended to include support for Google Home — an integration that joins existing support for Amazon's rival Alexa platform.

"We're excited to announce that Arduino Cloud now supports Google Home," the Arduino team says in its unveiling of the feature. "This means you can now interact with your devices, simply through your Google Home Assistant: use voice commands, the Google Home app, or create new routines integrating Arduino solutions. This new integration expands our ecosystem of compatible applications, which already includes Alexa. The process is similar, making it easy for you to connect your devices in the most natural way: just by talking!"

The Google Home integration into Arduino Cloud allows for a "Thing" — Arduino's term for a compatible microcontroller board connected to the Arduino Cloud — to be linked to Google Home through the existing smart home integration system. Each variable present in a "Thing" will then be exposed as a device in Google Home, making it available for two-way control — everything from reading a temperature sensor to controlling a relay or LED lights.

"Currently," the Arduino team says, "the supported Google Home sensors are temperature and motion detection, and the supported actionable accessories are light, dimmable light, colored light, smart plug, and smart switch. So, with the Arduino Google Home Action, you can turn on the lights in the living room, check the temperature in the bedroom, start the coffee machine, water your plants, find out if your dog is sleeping in the doghouse, and much more."

The feature is now available to all Arduino Cloud users, the company has confirmed, including those on the platform's free tier.