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The Open Home Foundation has released the Home Assistant 2026.11 beta, adding frontend support for Matter camera entities and a Labs preview of two-way audio. The update also brings the Home Assistant Community Store into the platform as a built-in Marketplace and changes controls for several Matter device types.
The Open Home Foundation has released the Home Assistant 2026.11 beta, adding frontend access to Matter camera feeds and a Labs preview of two-way audio. The update also brings the Home Assistant Community Store (HACS) into the platform as a built-in Marketplace, giving users a new way to browse and manage community integrations, dashboard cards and themes.
With an updated Matter Server, compatible cameras can appear in Home Assistant as standard camera entities, with snapshots and live video. The source report says the streams use WebRTC directly between the camera and the user’s browser, and that the entity reflects hardware state such as whether the camera’s privacy mode is active. The server already supported camera capabilities; this beta exposes them through Home Assistant’s main interface.
Two-way talk is a Labs preview, not a general default feature. After enabling it in system settings, users can access a talk button on supported live streams. At launch, the report lists Matter cameras and Reolink cameras configured over RTSP as compatible. RTMP and FLV streams cannot carry the return audio described in the report. Browser use requires Home Assistant to be opened over HTTPS because microphone access requires a secure connection; companion-app support over HTTP is still in development.
The beta also incorporates HACS as the built-in Marketplace, accessible from the main settings menu. Existing HACS installations are expected to migrate automatically, according to the report. Marketplace projects remain maintained by their individual developers and are not thereby officially supported by Home Assistant. Other changes cover Matter climate controls, tilt-only window coverings, lighting and air-quality sensors, plus a network map that now shows bridged devices.
Matter Cameras Reach the Dashboard
The change brings Matter camera features already available in the backend into the interface most Home Assistant users interact with. That can make compatible cameras more useful alongside other smart-home devices: users can view a stream and, where supported, speak through the camera or doorbell without relying on a separate camera interface. The audio feature remains limited by device and stream compatibility, and is still marked as a preview.
The Marketplace change is also a practical shift for people who customize Home Assistant. Bringing community add-ons into the settings interface may simplify finding and updating them, while the distinction between built-in access and official support remains important: community developers, not the platform, maintain those projects. For households with existing automations, several Matter behavior changes could require review rather than working as drop-in replacements.
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From Matter Server to User Interface
The release connects two parts of Home Assistant’s Matter support. According to the source report, the Matter.js server had already provided camera capabilities on the backend; 2026.11 makes those capabilities visible in the frontend. The beta therefore represents an interface and user-access change as well as a set of device fixes, rather than a claim that the underlying camera protocol first became available in this release.
Several refinements may affect established setups. Climate entities now resume their last active heating or cooling mode when switched back on, rather than falling back to a default. Users whose automations depended on that fallback may need to specify HVAC modes directly. Tilt-only Matter covers now use dedicated tilt actions, so scripts or voice routines using ordinary open and close commands may need adjustment. The report also lists a reverse motor-direction switch for Matter covers and a power-on color-temperature entity for lighting.
For air-quality sensors, the update uses the unit reported by the device for several concentration readings. Existing entities with convertible units may have values converted to match their prior unit, while some TVOC entities using density units may change device class and need statistics attention. These details make the beta relevant not only to people adding cameras, but also to users updating existing Matter devices and automations.
“Video streams run over WebRTC directly between your browser and the camera.”
— Matter Alpha report
Compatibility and Beta Limitations
The source describes a beta, so the final 2026.11 release may differ: it says some features might not be present in the beta build if they need more work. The report does not provide a complete list of compatible Matter camera models, nor does it specify whether every camera with a speaker will support talkback. Reolink told Matter Alpha that main-powered cameras with a speaker should support the capabilities through Home Assistant, but that is a company statement rather than a published compatibility list.
It is also not clear from the report when companion-app access to two-way audio over HTTP will arrive. Users should check whether their camera, stream configuration and Home Assistant connection meet the feature’s requirements before relying on talkback. The report gives a scheduled public release date but does not establish whether that date or every listed feature will remain unchanged.
Public Release Set for November 4
The 2026.11 build is available through Home Assistant’s beta channel for testing. The source report schedules the public release for Wednesday, November 4. Until then, beta testers can check camera and audio compatibility, review any affected automations, and report issues through Home Assistant’s usual project channels. The final release’s feature set and any further changes to companion-app support remain to be confirmed.
Users who rely on Home Assistant for daily device control may prefer to wait for the public release and review its final notes before upgrading. Those testing the beta should take particular care with scripts using the prior climate fallback or standard open-and-close actions for tilt-only covers.
Key Questions
What camera features does Home Assistant 2026.11 add?
The beta exposes compatible Matter cameras as camera entities, with snapshots and live WebRTC video when paired with an updated Matter Server. Camera entities can also track hardware state such as privacy mode, according to the source report.
Which cameras support two-way audio?
The report says the Labs preview supports Matter cameras and Reolink cameras configured over RTSP. It does not provide a complete list of models. RTMP and FLV streams are not supported for return audio in this release.
Does two-way talk work in a browser over HTTP?
No. The report says browser microphone access currently requires Home Assistant to be opened over HTTPS. Support for the companion apps over HTTP is described as in development.
What happens to an existing HACS installation?
Existing HACS setups are expected to migrate automatically during the upgrade, according to the report. Community projects remain maintained by their own developers and are not officially supported by Home Assistant simply because they appear in the Marketplace.
When is Home Assistant 2026.11 due for public release?
The source report schedules the public release for November 4, 2026, following the beta. The beta status means the final feature set may change before that release.
Source: matteralpha.com
