In the wave of smart homes, lighting has evolved from a simple functional need to a medium for expressing emotion, health, and intelligent living.
By 2025, the smart lighting industry is undergoing an unprecedented transformation. According to recent data, the global smart lighting market is expected to grow from $23.8 billion in 2023 to $42.8 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.5%.
As a core growth engine, China’s smart lighting market is projected to surpass the 100-billion-yuan threshold by 2027.
Amid this trend, the proliferation of the Matter protocol and the deep integration of AI technology are reshaping the industry landscape, driving smart lighting’s evolution from standalone products to whole-home intelligence and full-scenario connectivity.
01 Matter Protocol Breaks Down Compatibility Barriers, Building a Unified Smart Ecosystem
For a long time, the smart home sector has suffered from the problem of “technical silos,” where incompatible protocols and fragmented platforms prevented devices from different brands from communicating seamlessly, limiting the user experience.
The rise of the Matter protocol is changing this landscape. As an IP-based open standard, Matter is supported by tech giants like Apple, Google, and Amazon, enabling seamless interoperability and connectivity between devices from different brands.
At IFA 2025 in Berlin, the theme “Smart Living · Sustainable Future” inspired numerous innovative showcases. Signify launched its affordable Essential series smart bulbs, which support Matter over Thread protocol, significantly lowering the entry barrier for users and allowing more consumers to easily experience the convenience of smart lighting.
02 AI-Driven Intelligent Upgrades: Lighting Systems That Understand User Needs
The deep integration of artificial intelligence technology with lighting is one of the most notable features of the smart lighting sector in 2025. AI is no longer just a concept but is now embedded in the core functionality of products.
Natural language interaction has become the new standard. Lepro introduced the industry’s first AI Lighting Pro series with built-in AI microphones, allowing users to control lighting via voice commands like “Hey Lepro.” Its LightGPM™ AI engine, trained on color psychology and lighting design using large language models, can interpret natural language prompts and create professional lighting effects.
Context awareness and adaptive adjustment capabilities have greatly improved. The latest smart lighting systems can automatically adjust brightness and color temperature based on indoor lighting conditions, time, weather, and human activity.
Opple’s newest ceiling light can recognize human presence within 5 meters and enable precise zonal lighting.
03 Healthy Lighting Emerges as a Core Demand: How Light Environments Impact Well-Being
As consumers pay more attention to healthy lifestyles, wellness lighting has become a key growth driver in the smart lighting market. In 2024, sales of eye-care desk lamps increased by 45%, with technologies like full-spectrum lighting, flicker-free performance, and circadian rhythm regulation gaining significant attention.
Human-Centric Lighting (HCL) technology is becoming increasingly widespread, automatically adjusting color temperature based on the human body’s circadian rhythm. For example, cool white light (5000K) helps with alertness in the morning, while warm light (2700K) aids relaxation in the evening.
Opple Lighting globally launched the Skyline “Youth Edition,” which incorporates SDL Smart Spectrum technology. With an ultra-wide color range of 1800K-12000K and a high color rendering index of Ra97, it precisely simulates the natural lighting experience from sunrise to starlight.
The solution offers five core scene modes: Relaxed Social Mode, Clear Reading Mode, Romantic Dining Mode, Immersive Movie Mode, and Joyful Karaoke Mode. Each mode is designed to cater to the mental state and emotional experience of family members.
04 Energy Efficiency and Sustainability: Smart Lighting Contributes to Carbon Neutrality
Against the backdrop of global “dual-carbon” goals, the energy-saving features of smart lighting have become a key development focus. Combining LED technology with intelligent controls, smart lighting is helping achieve global carbon neutrality targets.
Smart lighting systems using LED technology are 30%-50% more energy-efficient than traditional LEDs. Companies like Tesla have introduced solar-powered smart lighting solutions that integrate photovoltaic storage systems for green energy self-sufficiency.
Intelligent motion-sensing technology uses light and infrared sensors to enable “lights on when people are present, off when they leave,” reducing unnecessary energy consumption. In one province, an innovative “enterprise investment + electricity bill sharing” model was used to retrofit streetlights, resulting in annual energy savings of 2.3609 million kWh and a reduction of 124,000 tons of carbon emissions.
05 Immersive Experiences and Emotional Connections: Lighting as an Emotional Designer of Spaces
By 2025, smart lighting has moved beyond mere functionality to focus on creating immersive experiences and emotional connections for users.
Emotional lighting has become a new focal point. The latest lighting systems are expanding into areas like mood healing and ambiance customization, becoming emotional mediums that connect people, spaces, and feelings.
When users express a preference for “Monet’s Garden,” the system can automatically match the color palette of his representative painting “Water Lilies,” seamlessly blending color psychology with visual experiences.
AR/VR + immersive smart lighting technology is now being applied. Smart lighting synchronizes with VR/AR games and home theater scenarios, creating more immersive spatial experiences. Philips Hue Sync, for example, automatically adjusts lighting colors based on changes in gameplay, enhancing the gaming experience.
06 Future Trends and Challenges: The Evolution of Smart Lighting
Looking ahead, the smart lighting industry will showcase three major trends: brain-computer interface technology enabling mind-controlled lighting, with lab-stage products already achieving alpha wave recognition for dimming; the widespread adoption of Lighting as a Service (LaaS) models, where home lighting systems evolve into distributed nodes of computing networks; and breakthroughs in biological lighting, with genetically modified glowing plants potentially replacing some artificial light sources.
The industry still faces three major challenges: the lack of cross-platform protocol standards hinders interoperability, the conflict between personalized customization and mass production remains unresolved, and cybersecurity risks increase as devices become smarter.
Future smart lighting will not just be about turning lights on and off but will move toward being “smarter, healthier, more energy-efficient, and more immersive,” becoming an integral part of smart homes and smart cities.
As AI continues to empower the industry and standards become more established, smart lighting will play an even greater role in urban governance, wellness services, green building, and other scenarios.
Lighting is no longer just a tool for illumination but has transformed into an “emotional companion” that understands moods and needs. It senses your emotions, regulates your routines, protects your health, and even reshapes your relationship with space.
Within the interconnected ecosystem built by the Matter protocol, smart lighting is quietly transforming our living experiences, making every beam of light filled with intelligence and warmth.