By Dipesh Shah, CTO & President, Havells Center for Research and Innovation
The Indian home, once defined by comfort and familiarity, is transforming into a dynamic ecosystem that can sense, respond, and adapt to the lifestyles of its occupants. This transformation is being powered by India’s thriving R&D landscape—where engineers, designers, and innovators are reimagining how technology can make everyday life smarter, safer, and more sustainable. From the labs of Havells CRI and research outreach across the country, ideas are turning into intelligent appliances and connected living experiences that bring technology closer to people’s lives.
India Is Leading the Smart-Home Revolution
India is uniquely positioned to shape the next phase of smart living. Our demographic advantage, rapidly urbanizing middle class, and openness to technology adoption are converging with a need for energy efficiency, reliability, and sustainability. Yet, what truly differentiates India’s innovation story is its diversity—of homes, climate, and consumer behavior. From high-rises in metros to independent homes in Tier-2 cities, Indian households form the perfect test bed for robust, affordable, and scalable smart-home technologies that can succeed globally.
In India, smart solutions go beyond convenience—they focus on relevance. They address energy management, cost optimization, and safety while enriching daily life through comfort, control, and peace of mind. For R&D teams, this means innovating with empathy—creating technology that understands local needs, habits, and aspirations.
Connectivity and Intelligent Devices
The Internet of Things (IoT) is no longer a futuristic concept—it’s already shaping Indian homes. From ACs to Water Heaters, appliances now communicate seamlessly, optimizing energy consumption and enhancing comfort. Lights respond to daylight, fans adjust to occupancy, and kitchen appliances operate more efficiently based on user behavior.
At Havells CRI, the focus is on designing smart systems that are simple, safe, and inclusive. Our innovations—like adaptive lighting, connected appliances, and multi-mode controls—are built for India’s diversity. Multilingual interfaces, intuitive UX, and advanced safety layers ensure accessibility for all. These systems also promote conscious living: users can track energy use, receive maintenance alerts, and get real-time tips to optimize consumption. This feedback loop empowers both users and R&D teams, creating a cycle of continuous improvement.
From Hardware to Human Experience
Traditional R&D once revolved around physical performance, better motors, reliable circuits, faster chips. But the next generation of R&D is human-centric. Today, engineers, designers, and data scientists work together to make devices not just smarter but more intuitive. A smart air purifier, for instance, doesn’t just offer Wi-Fi control—it learns from a user’s habits, anticipating needs and responding naturally.
At Havells CRI, this shift has transformed our labs into collaborative design studios. User insights inform prototypes, real-world testing drives refinement, and empathy guides engineering. This fusion of design and technology ensures that innovation feels personal, not mechanical.
Platforms, Not Products
In the evolving smart-home ecosystem, individual products are only part of the story. The real transformation lies in platforms—integrated ecosystems where devices, sensors, and applications interact effortlessly. Instead of juggling multiple disconnected apps, homeowners seek unified, context-aware control. Creating these ecosystems demands deep R&D in AI algorithms, cybersecurity, and human-machine interfaces. It’s not just about embedding chips into appliances; it’s about giving homes their own digital nervous system.
India’s R&D Advantage
India’s R&D ecosystem is rising to meet this challenge. Startups are pioneering IoT modules and AI-driven home intelligence, academia is advancing research in power electronics and machine learning, and large industrial labs—like Havells CRI—are integrating software, electronics, and design to scale innovation. This collaboration between industry, academia, and entrepreneurship positions India not merely as a market but as a global innovation hub for connected living.
Future of Indian Homes
The home of the future will be proactive, and the AI will be non-intrusive and invisible. The movement will be from automation to autonomous system that will understand user’s lifestyles and devices will adapt to the users and not the other way around.