Google said on Monday it will invest $450 million in ADT and work with the Florida-headquartered firm’s 20,000 technicians to sell and install the search giant’s Nest family of smart home products.
As part of the long-term investment — which is granting Google a 6.6% stake in ADT — the two companies will first attempt to reach more individual consumers and small businesses, and then work on building and selling next-generation smart home security offerings, they said.
Both companies have also committed $150 million each — provided they reach certain milestones — for co-marketing, product development, and investment in technology and employee training.
Over time, Nest’s devices will enhance ADT’s security monitoring and become the “cornerstone of ADT’s smart home offering,” said Rishi Chandra, Vice President and GM at Nest, in a blog post.
“The goal is to give customers fewer false alarms, more ways to receive alarm events, and better detection of potential incidents inside and around the home. It will also provide people with more helpful notifications that make everyday life more convenient, like package detection. ADT customers will also have access to Nest Aware, a service that keeps people informed about important events at home, including intelligent alerts and event history recording for up to 30 days,” she wrote.
ADT’s shares has more than doubled in the pre-market trading on the announcement.
More to follow…
