Reflections on 30 Years of the Smart Home - with Elizabeth Parks

About this episode

Elizabeth Parks reflects on three decades of smart home research and discusses key industry insights.

SecurityInfoWatch Editorial Director Rodney Bosch sits down with Elizabeth Parks, President and CMO of Parks Associates, live at the 30th annual CONNECTIONS Conference in Santa Clara, CA. Elizabeth reflects on three decades of smart home research, what the industry consistently misunderstands about consumers, the mounting pressure on dealer channels, and why cybersecurity is the conversation nobody is having loudly enough...yet. ‪Parks Associates‬ has been a foundational research voice for smart home, connected home, multifamily, and small business markets since 1986, helping manufacturers and platform companies validate product strategy and forecast where the market is heading. Topics covered: ✔️ Why today's smart home discussions mirror conversations from 30-40 years ago ✔️ What consumers actually care about (hint: not Thread, Z-Wave, or Zigbee) ✔️ The "build your own smart home" buyer journey — and why that first experience is everything ✔️ Why local dealers are struggling and what manufacturers owe them ✔️ Standout moments from Connections 2026: Perplexity's health-in-the-home keynote and a 14-year-old founder ✔️ What's coming for Connections 2027: agentic AI, convergence…

People in this episode

Host: Rodney Bosch

Guest: Elizabeth Parks

Topics covered

• smart home research
• consumer behavior
• dealer channels
• cybersecurity
• market trends

Keywords

• smart home
• cybersecurity
• consumer insights
• dealer challenges
• market research

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Parks Associates

Places: Santa Clara, CA

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