Can I add a security camera over Matter in 2026?

Last checked: 2026-09-23 against CSA newsroom, Matter 1.5 (2025-11-20) and Matter 1.5.1 (2026-03-31); SmartThings blog (2025-12-18)

Published 2026-09-23 · Home Interop editorial · Matter 1.5 and 1.5.1, as of 2026-09

• matter
• cameras
• smartthings
• apple-home
• google-home
• alexa

Which app will actually show the video

This is the part the spec announcement does not answer, and it is the part that decides whether a Matter camera is useful to you.

SmartThings described itself as "the first global smart home platform to support Matter-compatible cameras as a fully supported device category," naming Aqara, Eve and Xthings as partners bringing cameras to market in early 2026.

The sourcing limit on this table, stated plainly: "not announced" is an absence of evidence drawn from each platform's own published device-type documentation. It is strong evidence for these three companies, which announce Matter device-type additions and maintain public support lists, but it is not the same as a vendor stating that support is absent.

What the standard now defines

Matter 1.5 added cameras with, in the CSA's words, "live video and audio streaming using established WebRTC technology, enabling two-way communication and both local and remote access via standard STUN and TURN protocols." Beyond streaming, the specification covers "multi-stream configurations, pan-tilt-zoom controls, detection and privacy zones, and flexible storage options, including continuous or event-based recording to local or cloud destinations."

Matter 1.5.1, released 31 March 2026, refined this: multi-stream video and audio delivery so one camera can serve a high-resolution recording stream, a mobile-optimised viewing stream and an AI analysis stream at once; HEIC snapshots in place of JPEG; and pan-tilt-zoom fixes for cameras whose home position sits at the edge of their rotation range.

What else arrived alongside cameras

Matter 1.5 was a large release, and two other parts of it affect buying decisions:

• Closures. A unified model covering window shades, drapes, awnings, gates and garage doors, built from a small set of blocks describing motion types such as sliding, rotating and opening, and configurations such as single or dual panels and nested mechanisms.
• Energy. An electrical energy tariff device type letting utilities share real-time and forecast pricing, tariff and carbon data; improved smart metering; and EV charging enhancements making state-of-charge reporting and bi-directional charging certifiable under Matter.

The practical position in September 2026

A Matter camera is a real product category with a real specification behind it. Whether it is a sensible purchase depends entirely on which app you plan to watch it in. On SmartThings, support is announced and partner hardware was scheduled for early 2026. On Apple Home, Google Home and Alexa, the device type does not appear in the documentation those platforms maintain for exactly this purpose — so a Matter camera bought today is, on those three platforms, a camera you will be watching in its manufacturer's own app.