Home hub
Shout Josh a coffeeCoffee Set up with AI

Set up

The Mac first, then the tablet. The easiest way is to set it up with AI. This page is the step by step way.

What you need

Two things. Everything else is optional, and anything you don't have simply stays quiet.

A Mac at home that stays on

The Mac runs everything: the screen, the aircon and music controls, the voice, and the calendars on each person's card. It checks the calendars every 10 minutes, so if the Mac sleeps or is turned off, nothing updates and the tablet says the hub isn't answering until it's back.

macOS 14 or newer, left on and not asleep. Windows and Linux aren't supported.

An Android tablet

Android 11 or newer, in landscape, on the same Wi-Fi as the Mac. The screen is made for 1280 by 800 and scales to others.

There is no iPad app, and it doesn't run on a phone.

Optional, add any time

AirTouch 5 aircon
Rooms, vents, mode and temperature.
Google Cast speakers
Spotify on the speakers. Spotify Premium to move music between them and play by name.
TVs with couch-tv
Power, apps and volume for each TV.
A Claude plan
For questions the simple rules don't cover. It never uses an API key.

Built for one house: 7 aircon rooms, 3 speakers and 3 TVs. A different house changes one file, and setting it up with AI does that with you.

Set up the Mac with AIClaude Code asks you a few questions and does the rest. Recommended if Terminal is new to you. Set up the Mac yourselfSeven steps to copy and paste, just below.

On the Mac

Seven steps, plus voice and Spotify if you want them. Open Terminal (press Command and Space, type Terminal, press Return). Paste each line, press Return, and wait for it to finish before the next.

  1. Get Apple's developer tools

    A window opens: click Install and wait for it to finish. If it says they're already installed, carry on.

    xcode-select --install

  2. Check the Mac has Python

    It needs Python 3.11 or newer. If this shows 3.9 or an error, install Python from python.org, then close Terminal, open it again and check once more.

    python3 --version

  3. Get home hub

    This downloads it into a folder called home-hub in your home folder.

    cd ~ && git clone https://github.com/Seagey/home-hub.git && cd home-hub

  4. Install what it needs

    This stays inside the home-hub folder.

    python3 -m venv hub/.venv
hub/.venv/bin/pip install -r hub/hubserver/requirements.txt -r hub/homemcp/requirements.txt

  5. Name your rooms, speakers and TVs

    This makes your own settings file, then opens it. Change the names to the ones you say out loud, and the people who get a card (first names only). Save and close it. It is set up for 7 aircon rooms, 3 speakers and 3 TVs: a different number means changing hub/contract.py too, which the AI path does with you.

    mkdir -p ~/.home-hub && chmod 700 ~/.home-hub
cp config.example.json ~/.home-hub/config.json && open -e ~/.home-hub/config.json

  6. Start the hub

    It starts now and every time you log in, and checks that it answers.

    sh hub/deploy/install.sh

  7. Have a look

    The wall screen opens on the Mac. Check your devices show up.

    sh hub/deploy/open-wall.sh

  8. Voice Optional

    To talk to it. If you don't have Homebrew, the first line installs it (it asks for your Mac password). The last line downloads the speech model, about 470 MB. Without these, everything but voice works.

    /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
brew install ffmpeg whisper-cpp
mkdir -p ~/.home-hub/models && curl -L -o ~/.home-hub/models/ggml-small.en.bin https://huggingface.co/ggerganov/whisper.cpp/resolve/main/ggml-small.en.bin

  9. Spotify Optional

    On the Mac, open this address in a browser and follow the page. It walks you through making a free Spotify app and linking your account. Spotify Premium is needed to move music between speakers.

    open http://127.0.0.1:8790/spotify/login

On the tablet

Any Android tablet on Android 11 or newer, on the same Wi-Fi as the Mac. No cables and no developer settings.

  1. Download the app

    Open this page on the tablet and tap the button, or scan the code with the tablet's camera.

    Download the apphome-hub-tablet.apk, 7.5 MB

    Short address to type on the tablet:

    Scan with the tablet

  2. Install it

    Open the download. If Android asks, allow your browser to install apps (Settings shows the switch), then tap Install. If Play Protect says it doesn't know the app, tap More details, then Install anyway.

  3. Open Home

    The app is called Home. It may ask to use the microphone: that's for holding the button to talk. If Android asks which Home app to use, pick Home to bring the wall back with the Home button, or keep your usual one.

  4. Connect it to the Mac

    On the Mac, in the home-hub folder, run this. It shows the Mac's address and a 6 digit code. Type both on the tablet and tap Connect. The code works once, for 10 minutes.

    cd ~/home-hub/hub && .venv/bin/python -m hubserver pair
    The tablet app's first screen: Connect to your home hub, with a box for the hub address and one for the code.

Extras, any time

Each one is optional and can be added any time.

  1. A calendar on someone's card

    Copy the calendar's private iCal address (Google Calendar: Settings, the calendar, Integrate calendar). Run this with their name, then paste the address. It isn't shown as you paste.

    cd ~/home-hub/hub && .venv/bin/python -m hubserver calendar Sam --label Family

  2. Face ID

    On the tablet, tap your name, then Set up face. Stand about an arm's length away and look at the screen for a few seconds. Each person sets up their own. Forget my face removes it.

  3. Claude for questions

    Install Claude Code on the Mac and sign in with your Claude plan. Questions the simple rules don't cover then go to Claude. Home hub never uses an API key.

  4. Stuck? The full instructions are in the README. Or let an agent finish it with you: Set up with AI.
Joshua Seage

Shout Josh a coffee

Home hub is free and open source. Josh builds it in his own house after work. If it runs yours, a coffee keeps the next thing coming.

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