Former AirPods engineer unveils $8,999 heat pump that only works in Apple homes

Merino Energy, a climate-tech startup founded by a former senior AirPods engineer, on Monday unveiled a residential heat pump priced at $8,999 that is only compatible with so-called "Apple Ready" homes. The company said the device, called the ThermoPod Pro, uses a proprietary protocol that requires residents to own at least four Apple devices made after 2021 for full heating functionality.

“"For safety reasons, the heat pump will not start unless it can authenticate the building as a trusted Apple environment," a Merino spokesperson confirmed.”

The unit will initially ship only to customers whose homes have been certified under Merino’s new iThermal Architecture Program, which verifies that all thermostats, vents and external doors can be managed through Apple HomeKit. "For safety reasons, the heat pump will not start unless it can authenticate the building as a trusted Apple environment," a Merino spokesperson confirmed.

According to an internal presentation seen by reporters, the ThermoPod Pro can adjust indoor temperatures within a range of up to 1.3 degrees Celsius, provided the homeowner maintains an active iCloud+ subscription of at least 2TB. Users on lower storage tiers will have access to "Comfort Preview," which displays the target temperature on their iPhone but does not modify the climate.

Merino said the system relies on an array of 32 beamforming temperature sensors, inspired by the microphone arrays used in AirPods, to track subtle movements of heat around the home at a rate of 5,120 measurements per second. "We call it spatial thermodynamics," founder and CEO Lucas Merino said, adding that the unit can automatically lower heat output by 87% when it detects the user is not making sufficient eye contact with their Apple TV.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley estimated that only 0.4% of U.S. households currently meet the minimum compatibility threshold for the device, but said that number could rise to 6.7% if Apple were to bundle a “Home Thermodynamics Enablement Fee” with future iPhone models. "The addressable market may be small, but it is extremely over-indexed on disposable income and brand tolerance," the bank said in a note to clients.

In the event of a power outage or server disruption, the ThermoPod Pro will enter what Merino describes as Low Energy Legacy Mode, maintaining indoor temperatures at exactly 19.5 degrees Celsius as long as the owner’s Apple Watch remains charged above 12%. Homeowners without Apple Watches can purchase a $399 external authentication puck that must be wall-mounted within 1.5 meters of the unit and updated nightly.

Merino plans to roll out a subscription tier, ThermoPod Plus+, later this year, offering access to advanced features including "Heat Now" and "Cool Eventually" for $19.99 per month, according to marketing materials shared with installers. Future software updates are expected to enable basic compatibility with non-Apple homes in 2027, though the company cautioned that such installations may be limited to "ambient encouragement of warmth" rather than active heating.