v13 Enter HomeAware

Episode 1 : Plug. App. Boom.

Welcome to Enter HomeAware, a behind-the-scenes series about what it really takes to challenge the Home Security status quo.

As Chief of Staff, I have the privilege (and front-row seat) to almost every corner of this company—product pivots, leadership dynamics, go-to-market pressure, and the team culture that holds it all together.

This series is my way of sharing how a small, relentless team is building something real—while navigating the beautiful chaos of redefining an entire industry.

This is Episode 1: Plug. App. Boom. Things just got real.

FOMO in the Air

You may have seen the buzz—but if you weren’t at CONNECTIONS (The Premier Connected Home Conference by Parks Associates) last week, here’s what happened: HomeAware™ by Ubiety didn’t just show up—we showed out.

On Tuesday, we dropped a major press release announcing our partnership with Brinks Home.
On Wednesday, Brinks Home’s SVP of Customer Experience Veronica Moturi joined our CEO/Co-founder Keith Puckett on stage, signaling industry alignment at the highest level.
On Thursday, our partners Ivani and Evolution Digital shared the spotlight, reinforcing just how strategic—and real—our presence intelligence platform has become.

By the end of the event, the FOMO was palpable. People weren’t just intrigued—they were circling back, asking how they could get involved. Because unlike most of what’s floating around the smart home space, our product is real, our tech is proven, and our go-to-market plan is live.

But what you didn’t see? The pressure. The pivots. The people behind the scenes who made that moment land.

This is the story of what it took to get there: The decisions no one saw. The team that wouldn’t quit. And the moment the security industry realized... We’re not just talking about the future—we’re building it.

What Exactly Is HomeAware?

If you’re new here—first, hi 👋—let me back up a second.

HomeAware™ is a presence intelligence platform designed to make Home Security smarter, simpler, and way less annoying. It’s plug-and-play, device-agnostic, and doesn’t require a truck roll or a PhD to set up. Just plug it in, download the app, and you’re covered. Plug. App. Boom.

What we’re building is a new layer of intelligence for the home—one that knows the difference between motion and actual presence. One that adapts to your routines. One that actually makes you feel safe, not just notified.

The idea behind HomeAware started with a moment that every modern homeowner dreads. Our founder Keith was on a business trip in New York when he got a call from his Home Security provider for his home in Chicago: “An alarm has been triggered. Should we send the police?”

Naturally, he asked: “What happened? Who’s at home? Is it real?” But the system had no answers—just a generic alert and a big, expensive decision. That moment made something crystal clear: Home Security wasn’t actually intelligent—it was just reactive. No presence awareness. No context. Just sensors yelling into the void. He realized the system was fundamentally broken. And it needed to be reimagined.

That single experience sparked the question behind everything we’re building now:
What if a home could actually understand who’s there—and respond accordingly. That question turned into a mission. And with the right team, a bold vision, and a few brave early believers—it’s becoming very real, very fast.

The Relentless Vision of a Founder Who Refused to Wait

There’s a Steve Jobs quote that feels especially close to home lately:

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.”

But what he didn't say covered by Mahatma Gandhi:

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

Our founder and CEO Keith didn’t just want to build a better product—he’s set on changing the way Home Security works, top to bottom.

In the past eight months, I’ve had a front-row seat. There were moments when we couldn’t get prioritized by a major panel manufacturer—despite having clear demand and a strong case. Rather than waiting around, he made the bold decision: we’d go first-party.

That single pivot didn’t just change our product—it changed our trajectory. That one call turned into the engine of our momentum:

• We launched our own hardware—low-cost, beautifully simple, installable in minutes with no truck roll.
• We made setup intuitive—plug it in, download the app, and you’re done.
• We’re going live in June—with our first national partner.

Others in the space are still in “innovation theater.” We’re already in-market.

The Invisible Work

What no one saw last week was the relentless energy, the late-night tinkering, and the grit that went into making the demo not just functional—but compelling. Let’s be clear: we weren’t scrambling to get a prototype working. Our plug was built. The product was live. But for CONNECTIONS, we wanted to do more than demo what we’d already shipped—we wanted to give people a glimpse into what’s next.

So, we developed an extended demo: a near-term vision of where we’re headed and how we believe Home Security should evolve. The goal wasn’t to wow the room with hypotheticals—it was to show that our roadmap isn’t just ambitious. It’s inevitable. What followed was a full-court press to make that vision land clearly and convincingly.

For weeks, our engineering team worked tirelessly to make the system bulletproof. The demo didn’t just have to work. It had to speak. Our product leader practiced the story, refined the flow, adjusted every line of the script to make it as clear and as captivating as possible.

The night before our demo, we were still at it—running through the flow at 10:30 p.m. after a full day of travel. I’d been up since 4 a.m., my brain was fried, and at one point, I stood up, raised my arms in a deep stretch, and said to my CEO:“Hey Boss. It’s late and I’m exhausted. I’m not going to sugarcoat it—the flow doesn’t work...”

He took it with total grace. We reworked the structure, I rebuilt the slides that night, and the next morning? The story landed. This wasn’t about rehearsing for optics. It was about telling the story with conviction—and making sure the tech held up its end of the bargain.

The Moves That Made the Moment

Momentum isn’t just built with code. It’s built with alignment, timing, and the right people pulling in the same direction.

Over the past eight months, we didn’t just ship hardware—we built an ecosystem around a shared belief: that intelligence—not more hardware—is the future of Home Security.

Each move was intentional:

• January: We announced our partnership with Evolution Digital, laying the foundation for our first-party hardware platform.
• April: We released a white paper with Parks Associates calling out what the industry had ignored for too long—more hardwares won’t fix a system that doesn’t understand presence.
• Early May: We introduced the very plug designed to solve that exact problem.
• Mid-May: We announced our technology partnership with Ivani, integrating RF sensing into our presence intelligence platform.
• Then last week: We went public with Brinks Home as our first national go-to-market partner.

These weren’t just press releases. They were building blocks—each one reinforcing our product, validating our roadmap, and unlocking new value for the end user.

Strategic partnerships aren’t a bonus for us. They’re how we scale the mission. And the strategy behind them? That was led by our founder from day one.

Why Extraordinary Teams Matter

What powers this company isn’t just tech. It’s the people who build it.

In just eight months, this company has transformed—from mindset to muscle. We shifted from being tech-led to product-led. From building what’s possible to building what’s essential. The momentum we’re seeing right now? That’s the result of an entire team showing up—day after day—with intensity, humility, and relentless care. Everyone played a part. Everyone made it better.

And while it’s impossible to name every contribution, a few moments come to mind:

• Our advisor (and former Blink CTO/Co-founder) helps us build first-party hardware in just six months—a feat nearly unheard of in IoT.
• Our product leader constantly challenges assumptions, pushing us toward a user experience that actually reflects how people live.
• Our People & Culture leader creates an environment where team members feel safe, supported, and energized.

From engineers solving last-minute firmware bugs to ops leaders coordinating complex partnerships, from design to QA—it all worked because the team trusted each other.

As of my own contribution to the team as the Chief of Staff, I shape the company’s rhythm, keep CEO focused, define priorities and build a more inclusive culture where every team member is heard and valued.

One new teammate recently said, while we were waiting for ice cream:

“I’ve never seen a team this passionate—where everyone shows up and gives 100%. And where everyone’s so damn good at what they do.”

It felt like something from a corporate video. But it was real. And it was earned.

What’s Next

We haven’t “made it.” But we’ve hit something important: momentum.

To founders trying to break through:
Bet on the team. Build what matters. Stay product-led.

To industry leaders watching closely:
We’re not pitching possibilities. We’re building the future.

And to everyone we met at CONNECTIONS:
Thanks for listening. The next chapter’s already underway.

The industry is noticing—and more importantly, so are the people we’re building for. This is just the beginning.

Bonus

🎥 Want to hear it directly?
Here’s a quick clip of Brinks Home’s SVP of Customer Experience Veronica Moturi sharing why they chose to partner with HomeAware by Ubiety—and why this is more than just a product launch.