Three bedrooms, kitchen, hall, data room
The future of housing depends largely on smart heating systems and sensors. As energy infrastructure becomes increasingly complex, services are becoming possible that were previously almost unimaginable – provided that start-ups seize the opportunity.
The SmartLivingNEXT research project is based on the idea of no longer viewing buildings in isolation. Flats, neighbourhoods and buildings are becoming places where different aspects of life and services converge: energy supply, care, support, housing and building management.
At the heart of SmartLivingNEXT lies a federated data ecosystem. Here, data is exchanged securely, in a controlled manner and in a way that ensures interoperability. However, the data remains within its respective source environment – energy consumption data, for example, remains with the electricity supplier. The data is made usable through common standards, connectors, semantic models and clear rules for access and use.
This is relevant because the technology has long been in place in many buildings: sensors, digital meters, heat cost allocators, building automation, assistance solutions and specialist applications. What is often missing is the connection between these systems. This is precisely where SmartLivingNEXT aims to step in and turn individual data silos into a usable network.
Integrating housing, care and energy
In the building sector, the focus has long since moved beyond heating, electricity and running costs. Buildings are also living spaces, care environments and places for social participation. And thanks to photovoltaic systems, they are also an active part of the energy system. Anyone who considers these interconnections holistically will quickly realise that many problems can be solved more effectively when data from different areas is securely linked together.
In the energy sector, up-to-date consumption and feed-in data are essential for better managing energy flows, distributing loads and developing new tariff models. Without data, the energy transition in buildings often remains purely reactive. With data, it becomes more predictable, transparent and efficient.
The situation is similar in the care and support sector. In outpatient care in particular, there are long periods between individual visits by care staff during which there is no direct supervision. When data on the living environment, vital signs or information from home automation systems are combined effectively, risks can be identified earlier, support can be organised in a more targeted manner, and people can be supported safely in their own homes for longer.
The benefits are also very tangible in the home itself. Tenants gain greater transparency regarding their energy consumption. Housing associations can better assess the condition of buildings. Support services can be tailored more individually. And at neighbourhood level, new opportunities arise to conceptualise energy, housing and care as an integrated service offering.
How does the housing sector benefit?
This opens up a new role for the housing sector. It does not automatically become an energy supplier, care provider or software company itself. But it becomes the key enabler of an ecosystem.
The benefits are felt on several levels.
Greater transparency: consumption data, operational data and property-related information can help to identify energy-saving potential at an earlier stage, improve processes and provide tenants with more targeted information.
New services: These include, for example, applications for cost transparency, support with everyday life, heat protection, adapting homes to meet care needs, or data-driven assistance services for older people.
Stronger position: The housing sector is strengthening its position at the interface between tenants, energy companies, care providers and technology partners. Anyone who has access to buildings, tenant communication channels and property portfolio knowledge becomes a crucial hub within the data ecosystem.
Less effort: Particularly in fragmented markets, data hubs help to reduce the effort involved in integration. Not every housing organisation needs to develop or operate every solution itself. When standards, connectors and role models are in place, participation becomes more realistic even for smaller players and opens the door to start-ups.
What does the housing sector need to do?
For this model to work, buildings and housing stock must be understood not only as property but also as digital infrastructure. After all, data from buildings is a strategic raw material for new services.
Added to this is the question of connectivity. Systems, data sources and processes must become interoperable. Open interfaces, standards and clean data models are therefore becoming increasingly important.
The issue of governance is equally crucial. It must be clear what data is used for what purposes, who is permitted to access it, and how consent, data sovereignty and security are guaranteed. Trust is crucial, particularly in the residential sector. Tenants will only accept data-driven services if the benefits and control remain transparent.
Finally, a new understanding of roles is needed. Housing organisations do not have to offer all services themselves. However, they should be able to coordinate their partners and facilitate participation in the ecosystem.
An overview of use cases
To ensure that SmartLivingNEXT does not remain an abstract concept, it is worth looking at specific use cases.
GAiST
GAiST stands for preventive risk detection based on vital signs and home automation data.
- The aim is to support independent living in old age, as well as assisted and supported living arrangements.
- Data from the home environment and vital signs are combined to identify risks at an earlier stage.
- In practical terms, this can mean that anomalies in daily life become apparent more quickly and help can be organised more effectively.
- This should enable people to live safely in their own homes for longer.
- In addition, the project demonstrates how AAL scenarios – that is, everyday life support systems – can be integrated into homes on a larger scale.
ExpliCareNEXT
ExpliCareNEXT addresses the day-to-day realities of care in the home.
- AI-based step-by-step recommendations for action are being developed.
- The target group consists primarily of unskilled or less experienced home care staff.
- The background to this is the shortage of skilled staff.
- The aim is not to replace professional care.
- Rather, the aim is to provide better guidance, structure and support for care work.
- The added value lies in greater confidence in carrying out tasks, better guidance and more consistent processes.
BIM-4-CARE
BIM-4-CARE combines building data with care-appropriate adaptations to living spaces.
- Living environments are digitally recorded and visualised using 360-degree images.
- The target groups are care services, care advisers and people in need of care.
- It is possible to assess whether a flat can be made more age-appropriate through simple measures.
- For example, it highlights where grab rails would be useful, where there is a lack of space for movement, or where alterations might be necessary.
DuITeasy
DuITeasy is developing an Assistance Dataspace.
- The focus is on smart assistance services derived from the data space.
- These include, for example, emergency detection, heat protection and everyday assistance in sheltered housing or within the local community.
- Various data sources and services are brought together.
- It is therefore not about a single app, but about assistance as a combinable service.
- The benefit arises precisely because multiple services become interoperable and work together.
COMET
COMET focuses on the secure and autonomous sharing of data.
- At the heart of this is the exchange of data between households and providers of smart living, energy and care services.
- The crucial question is who shares which data and for what purpose.
- Users should retain control over their data.
- This makes data sovereignty a prerequisite for new business models.
- This is particularly crucial in the home environment, as acceptance will only be achieved if data use remains transparent, purpose-limited and secure.
FAME4ME
FAME4ME focuses on the household as part of the energy system.
- The project is developing an energy portal for households.
- It displays live consumption data from the data room as well as dynamic electricity prices.
- In addition, AI-supported algorithms for sustainable energy management are being investigated.
- This enables consumption, costs and tariffs to be more closely linked.
- This creates greater transparency for households and greater flexibility for the energy system.
ForeSightNEXT
ForeSightNEXT fulfils an overarching steering and blueprint function.
- Key components such as catalogues, tools and connectors are being developed.
- The project thus creates the infrastructural foundation on which further applications can be built.
- One use case is an energy efficiency data portal serving as a national access point to energy data.
- This portal may, amongst other things, be relevant for obligations under the Energy Efficiency Act (EnEfG) and AI-supported building data analyses.
- Another use case is a mobile app offering energy-saving tips and cost transparency for landlords and tenants in blocks of flats with tenant-supplied electricity.
Why are start-ups important?
Young companies often possess the ability to quickly translate specific problems into usable products. They test at an earlier stage, develop in a more iterative manner and think more in terms of use cases. This is particularly valuable in a field such as smart living, because many solutions need to function very closely aligned with everyday life.
Furthermore, data platforms only realise their full value when specialised services are developed on their basis. Infrastructure alone does not create a market. It is only when companies develop applications for energy, care, housing or assistance that the potential becomes tangible.
Start-ups can take on several roles in this process. They can occupy niches, develop new services, make smarter use of interfaces and accelerate the pace of innovation. Precisely because the housing sector cannot develop every application itself, technology partners are crucial.
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