Brillo: Google announces Android to power houses

Scrubbed down operating system is built for parking meters and thermostats, among more

Attendees take photographs before the start of the opening keynote during the 2015 Google I/O conference (Getty)

Google has built a special version of Android that will allow houses to talk to each other.

The slimmed-down operating system is meant to allow cameras, thermostats, door locks and other parts of the home to be made smart and talk to the internet and one another.

The release marks Google’s entry into the “Internet of Things” or the “connected home” – the idea that the house of the future will be connected up to the internet, making appliances and furniture smart. It is intended to allow people to be able to control their belongings from their smartphone – turning up their heating on their way home, for instance.

The company said that it would release a developer preview of Brillo in the third quarter of this year. Other parts of the software will be released in the fourth quarter, the company said.

A number of companies, including Apple, have released or are thought to be working on similar operating systems. They are required to allow the devices to talk to each other properly – the operating systems and messaging platforms allow for phones to control devices, as well as for them to send information to one another and automatically take action.