Silicon Labs Sees IoT Opportunity, as Project Connected Home Rebrands as Matter

The nearly 20-year-old Zigbee Alliance rebranded as the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) and renamed Project Connected Home over IP as Matter, it said Tuesday. A new Matter mark will serve as a “seal of approval” to ensure that any device built on the standard is “reliable by nature, secure by design and compatible at scale,” said the organization. CSA will continue to develop Zigbee technology and retain the Zigbee brand, it said.

Silicon Labs jumped on the Matter announcement Tuesday, saying its wireless technologies are available for development of Matter end products that support Thread, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth protocols. "We are proud to share our extensive wireless experience with the Matter community, providing more than 20% of the source code, and are delighted to see the opportunities it brings to the future of IoT connectivity," said Silicon Labs President Matt Johnson. The success of IoT depends on simplicity, reliability and security, said Johnson, saying Silicon Labs hardware and software allow developers to bring products to market enabling a “seamless consumer experience."

Silicon Labs referenced Matter as a global IoT connectivity standard that “builds on top of existing IP-connectivity protocols to enable cross-platform IoT communication, encompassing end products, mobile applications, and cloud services.” Security is a core part of Matter, with an architecture that makes the IoT more secure by ensuring that every device joining the network is authenticated, that every message is encrypted and authenticated, uses proven and standard cryptographic algorithms and offers over-the-air secured updates, it said.

CSA CEO Tobin Richardson said the alliance’s ongoing collaboration with industry experts such as Silicon Labs "allowed us to create a secure, industry-unifying standard to serve as the building block of connected devices." He called Matter “the future of reliable connectivity.” CSA’s portfolio of connectivity standards includes Smart Energy, Green Power and rf4ce. The rebranding is an identity that’s better aligned with reshaping the IoT by creating global standards that have an impact on the market, it said.

Last year, 560 Zigbee technology devices were certified, a 30% year-over-year increase; more than half a billion Zigbee chipsets have been sold, and close to 4 billion are expected to ship by 2023. The alliance has more than 350 member organizations from different categories in the IoT chain and more than 3,000 individual members.

CSA partnered with the World Economic Forum and the Council on the Connected World on an initiative to help build a “global connected future that is more sustainable, resilient, and equitable for all.” CSA has a seat on the Council on the Connected World with the goal of strengthening global governance and innovation in IoT, it said.