How far would you travel to meet people who share your passion for the open home?
For one attendee at our November 7 Community Day gathering, it meant flying from Italy. For another, it meant driving 2,000 kilometres. Those journeys say something about the community behind Home Assistant — and the value of spending time together in person.
Community Day 2026 brought enthusiasts, developers, and hardware teams together for talks, demonstrations, and conversations. People arrived from near and far, bringing different experiences and perspectives, but sharing the same curiosity about what they could build and learn together.
From the Screen to the Demo Table
The venue was ready to welcome attendees, with Home Assistant, ESPHome, Music Assistant, and Open Home Foundation banners overhead, alongside community stickers and souvenirs at the registration table.
The talks offered ideas to take back to everyday projects. One presentation explored how camera-based systems could move beyond simply showing a pet to recognising its behaviour and sending an event notification through Home Assistant.
It was a concrete example of the questions that make this space interesting: how can technology understand more of what happens at home, and turn that understanding into something useful?
Away from the presentation screen, demonstration tables offered another way to explore. Attendees gathered around devices, took a closer look at the hardware, and spoke directly with the teams showing it.
Seeing something in person creates room for questions that a product page or an online discussion might never prompt.
Together, the presentations and informal exchanges gave the day its rhythm: listening, looking, asking, and finding another conversation to join.
More Than 300 Gifts, and Plenty to Share
Sponsors contributed more than 300 gifts to the event, adding another welcome element to the gathering.
That generosity complemented the time and effort people had already invested in making the day happen — from preparing presentations and demonstrations to travelling long distances to attend.
Yet the most memorable part was the people. A flight from Italy and a 2,000-kilometre drive are remarkable commitments for a community meetup. They are also a reminder that an open-source community reaches well beyond the software: it lives in the people willing to share their time, knowledge, and enthusiasm.
Thank You for Making It Happen
We at Sensereo were delighted to support the event alongside Open Home Foundation, APOLLO, Seeed Studio, Silicon Labs, M5Stack, Aqara, Sonoff, Shelly, Yeelight, and Heffeix.
Our thanks to all our fellow sponsors for helping make the gathering possible.
As the venue provider, we also took care of much of the event materials, preparation, and on-site organisation. It was a pleasure to welcome the community and help create a space for people to meet, share, and learn.
To the organisers, speakers, exhibitors, volunteers, and everyone who attended: thank you.
Whether you travelled a short distance or crossed borders to be there, your presence made the gathering what it was.
The group photo records one moment from November 7. The conversations, connections, and ideas are what we hope everyone carries into their next project — and their next community gathering.
