Google Nest

About Google Nest

Google owns Nest. It agreed to buy Nest Labs in January 2014 for $3.2 billion in cash, and today Nest is part of Google's own hardware team.

Google Nest is the home side of that hardware: thermostats, cameras, doorbells, smart displays and Wi-Fi, plus the Google Home Speaker and Google TV Streamer. You set it all up in the Google Home app.

Phones, watches and fitness trackers aren't here. Those sit under Pixel and Fitbit.

Who owns Nest?

Google. It announced the deal on January 13, 2014, paying $3.2 billion in cash for Nest Labs.

The promise back then was a separate identity. Nest would keep its own brand and keep running under co-founder Tony Fadell.

That lasted a while. When Google reorganized under Alphabet in 2015, Nest was listed as one of Alphabet's Other Bets, separate from Google. In February 2018 it was folded back in, joining Google's hardware team under Rick Osterloh.

So today the chain is simple: Alphabet owns Google, and Google runs Nest as part of its devices business.

Who founded Nest?

Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers. Fadell was Nest's CEO when Google bought it, and Larry Page said in the announcement that the pair had built a tremendous team. Fadell's line in the same release: "We're thrilled to join Google."

Both came from Apple. TechCrunch's report on the deal called Fadell the "father of the iPod" and described Rogers as one of the first engineers on the original iPhone team.

Their pitch was fixing "unloved but important" home devices. That meant the Nest Learning Thermostat and the Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide alarm, the two products Google's announcement named.

When did Google Home become Google Nest?

In May 2019. Google brought its Google Home products under the Nest brand and started letting people move their Nest Accounts over to Google Accounts.

The naming has kept shifting since. On Google's store right now, cameras, doorbells, thermostats, displays and Wi-Fi carry the Nest name. The speaker and the TV streamer are branded Google. The app and the subscription are both called Google Home.

That subscription changed too. In October 2025, Google Home Premium replaced Nest Aware for camera history and added Gemini features.

Confusing? A bit. But it's all one family, run from one app.

How does Google Nest sit next to Pixel and Fitbit?

They're siblings in Google's hardware lineup, each covering a different part of your life.

Google Pixel is the personal tech: phones, Pixel Watch and Pixel Tablet. The tablet even shows up next to Nest Hub in Google's display category.

Fitbit is health and fitness. Google finished buying it in January 2021, and in May 2026 the Fitbit app was renamed the Google Health app. Fitbit still names the devices.

Gemini is the newer link between them. Google says Gemini for Home will replace Google Assistant on existing speakers and displays over time, and the Google Home Speaker is the first device built for it.

Who is Google Nest for?

People who want their thermostat, cameras, doorbell and speakers running from one app, tied to a Google Account.

You don't have to go all-Google, though. Since December 2022, many Nest speakers and displays, plus Nest Wifi Pro, can act as hubs for Matter, the shared standard that lets devices from different brands work together.

If you're after a phone or a watch, Pixel is your page. Sleep and fitness tracking? That's Fitbit.

And if you build smart home devices, Google offers Home APIs, Matter and cloud-to-cloud integrations so your product can work with Google Home.

What should you check before buying Nest gear?

Check compatibility first, especially for thermostats.

Google runs an online Compatibility Checker, and you only need to know your heating system type. High-voltage systems like electric baseboard heaters won't work, and neither will millivolt or proprietary systems. Some setups need a C wire or a pro.

Then think about how long Google will support the device. Starting October 25, 2025, first and second gen Nest Learning Thermostats lost app control, remote access and software updates.

Finally, check what's behind the subscription. Camera history and Gemini camera features sit in Google Home Premium, so price that in before you buy.