Google, ADT Partnering on Home Security Products

Google is pairing its Nest smart home technology with ADT and buying a stake in the home security company. Google will invest $450 million (roughly Rs. 3,384 crores) in ADT in exchange for newly created Class B shares that come with no votes in company elections, appointments, or removal of directors. It's stake amounts to about 6.6 percent of the company.

Google's Nest hardware will be integrated at ADT, which does system installations and monitoring.

ADT plans to begin offering Google devices to its customers starting this year. Shares of the company, based in Boca Raton, Florida, spiked 85 percent before the opening bell Monday.

Both companies will commit an additional $150 million (roughly Rs. 1,128 crores) subject to the achievement of certain milestones, to be used for co-marketing, product development, technology and employee training to advance the partnership.

Earlier this month, Google revealed a fresh and official image of the new Nest smart speaker that is expected to be the successor to the Google Home series. The range is in much need of an update, with Google having launched the original Google Home globally back in late 2016. The new product is in line with Google's new Nest branding for its smart home products, as the company looks to step up its product portfolio to take on Amazon's Echo range of smart speakers.

The image, shared by Google with various tech publications, including Engadget, shows a fair amount of detail on the new Google Nest speaker. The device is shown standing upright and has indicator lights at the front, along with a fabric-wrapped exterior. A cable can be seen extending out the back for power, but the back of the smart speaker itself can't be seen.