Open Home Foundation Community Day 2026: What We Saw at the Columbus and Brooklyn Meetups
Saturday, November 7 was the Open Home Foundation's Community Day 2026, and it was one of our favorite days of the year. People who use Home Assistant, ESPHome, and Music Assistant got together in person all over the world to share what they've built.
We split up so we could be at two of them. Justin went to Columbus, Ohio, where TJ Huddleston from the HomeTech.fm podcast was hosting. Trevor went to the Brooklyn meetup in New York, where Paulus Schoutsen, the founder of Home Assistant, joined everyone.
Community Day 2026 by the numbers
Here are the totals from the Open Home Foundation.
- 97 events
- 36 countries
- 2,712 registered guests
- 34.5 hours of meetups back to back as the day moved around the world
This was also the first year ESPHome and Music Assistant meetups were part of Community Day, which made it feel like the whole open home community in one day.
Columbus, Ohio with TJ from HomeTech.fm
TJ hosted the Columbus meetup, and it was a great room. People brought their projects, walked through their favorite automations, and showed off their dashboards.
Thank you to TJ for hosting and for making everyone feel welcome. If you want more, his show did a whole episode on the best Home Assistant meetups.
Brooklyn, New York with Paulus
Paulus started Home Assistant as a side project, and it grew into one of the biggest open source projects in the world. Getting to hear from him in a room full of people who use it every day doesn't happen often.
Brooklyn was the same story. Everyone had something to share, and it was a lot of fun to see it all in person.
What we heard from the community
In both cities, the best part was hearing what people are building.
- Projects people built themselves, from small sensors to full ESPHome builds
- Automations that make life a little easier, and a few that were purely for fun
- Dashboards of every style, from wall tablets to phone screens
This is the stuff that shapes what we make. After we launched CAST-1, the community asked for audio in, and that became CAST PRO-1. Conversations like the ones in Columbus and Brooklyn are where those ideas come from.
Find or host a meetup near you
You don't have to wait for next year's Community Day.
- Find one: meetups are listed on the Home Assistant Luma calendar
- Host one: the Open Home Foundation's Community Meetups Playbook covers everything you need to get started
We love meeting people in person too. This year we've been at LAN parties like LANWAR and WhaleLAN, a community get-together in Toronto, and now Community Day. If you're hosting a meetup and want us to stop by or send a few sensors for a demo table, reach out on the Apollo forum.
Community Day FAQ
What is the Open Home Foundation Community Day?
Community Day is a worldwide day of local meetups for people who use Open Home Foundation projects like Home Assistant, ESPHome, and Music Assistant. Hosts run their own format, from show-and-tell and automation demos to quizzes and hardware swaps.
When was Community Day 2026?
Community Day 2026 was Saturday, November 7, 2026.
How big was Community Day 2026?
The Open Home Foundation counted 97 events in 36 countries, 2,712 registered guests, and 34.5 hours of continuous meetups as the day moved around the world.
Was Community Day only for Home Assistant?
No. 2026 was the first year ESPHome and Music Assistant meetups were part of Community Day alongside Home Assistant.
How do I find a Home Assistant meetup near me?
Home Assistant meetups are listed on the Home Assistant Luma calendar at luma.com/homeassistant. Meetups happen all year, not only on Community Day.
Can I host my own Home Assistant meetup?
Yes. The Open Home Foundation encourages anyone to host a meetup any time, and its Community Meetups Playbook walks through planning one.
Thank you
Thank you to TJ for hosting Columbus, to Paulus and the Brooklyn hosts, to every volunteer who ran one of the 97 meetups, and to the Open Home Foundation for bringing it all together. Most of all, thank you to everyone who showed up and shared what they're working on. See you at the next one!
Apollo Automation designs, engineers, and manufactures privacy-first, locally-controlled smart home sensors in Versailles, Kentucky. Every product features 100% local control with no cloud dependencies or subscriptions required. Apollo is a Works With Home Assistant partner, Made For ESPHome certified, Works With Homey certified, a BBB Accredited Business, and the second official commercial partner of the Open Home Foundation. Learn more at apolloautomation.com.
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