CEDIA’s relationship with the Indian residential technology market has been more than a decade in the making. But in recent years, the association has shifted from exploratory engagement to structured investment. We find out why.
“CEDIA has been working in the Indian market for about ten years, which began fairly sporadically,” explains Wendy Griffiths, senior vice president of membership & global development at CEDIA. “When I took over global development more recently, we identified India as a key emerging market.”
Several factors, like India’s GDP profile, rapidly expanding premium residential sector and growing CEDIA membership pool, inspired more targeted commitment. Together, they ranked India as a priority global growth market along with Australia and Canada.
Griffiths, CEDIA
Local foundations
CEDIA began delving into the market at local level, investing in representation on the ground. “We’ve been very deliberate about listening to the local voice rather than trying to apply what we’re doing in other markets,” Griffiths says.
Much of the groundwork was laid between 2019 and 2020, when the association identified local subject matter experts and created working groups directly from the Indian integration community.
This approach has coincided with a clear rise in the quality and ambition of Indian residential projects. Regional integrators are making a valuable contribution to global best practice as part of an evolving story, seen in the eminent projects recognised at the CEDIA Smart Home EMEA Awards 2025.
“Some of the projects coming out of India now are winning global awards and can stand up on their own,” Griffiths says. “From a global perspective, they’re absolutely there.”
Over the past three years membership in India has grown by 66%, a figure Griffiths describes as “phenomenal.”
“We looked closely at whether the market needed special pricing,” she notes. “And in India it does, mostly driven by economic conditions, market opportunity and our foundational member population.”
“We’ve been very deliberate about listening to the local voice."
In CEDIA's latest Market Research Insights for India (2024/25), residential AV delivered the majority of integrator project revenue at 70%, outnumbering commercial AV two-to-one.
A sharing culture
In earlier years, CEDIA sent international presenters over to India for teaching. But as the market developed, so too did the association's educational model.
“The market has matured, and we now have some incredible local subject matter experts,” says Griffiths. “We very much use local experts for training because the knowledge is there.”
One factor that sets India apart, she adds, is a general willingness to share information openly with peers, accelerating professional development in turn.
“I’m on about five WhatsApp groups for India,” she says. “The conversations are constant, for example ‘I’ve got this problem, has anyone else dealt with it?’ or ‘Does anyone know a product solution for this?’ The volume and quality of responses is wonderful to see.”
It's worth noting that WhatsApp functions as a business platform in India, reflecting the country's close-knit industry culture.
Divergence from global trends
While Indian residential projects share many global characteristics, a clear regional difference is the central role of entertainment.
“A home cinema is absolutely a driver in this market,” Griffiths explains. “You only need to visit India to see the influence of film.”
With both Bollywood and regional cinema industries like Tollywood shaping popular culture, entertainment is deeply embedded in social life. Unsurprisingly, this cultural touchpoint translates directly into residential design.
“A lot of projects revolve around home cinema or entertainment spaces,” she says. “These are often large homes designed for hosting big parties and mobile DJs.”
CEDIA research shows that 44% of home cinema projects in India feature more than seven seats, while 10% exceed eleven seats, pushing some residential projects into what Griffiths describes as “commercial-sized, boutique cinema” territory.
“You look at some of these award-winning projects and think they’re commercial cinemas,” she says.
Brand, status and luxury mindset
Another defining characteristic of the Indian market is its brand consciousness. “Homeowners are very brand-driven,” Griffiths reveals. “They’re willing to invest more to ensure they’re buying brands with strong reputations.”
Technology choices are closely tied to social positioning for many clients. Owning “the best” is as much about personal identity as performance, particularly in ultra-luxury residential segments.
“You look at some of these award-winning projects and think they’re commercial cinemas."
Project scale is geographically pronounced in areas like Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), as well as southern cities such as Hyderabad and Bangalore.
Houses in Sector 109, Gurgaon, New Delhi. Credit: AKM Creatives
Evolving priorities
As luxury residential trends blossom, smart home integration is also proving its worth in more far-reaching applications.
“There’s been a slight shift toward more essential services, security and networking in particular,” Griffiths says. “We’ve seen more focus on that over the last couple of years.”
While still less prominent than in Western markets, energy management is beginning to gain traction. Environmental factors like air quality and pollution are likely to drive further adoption of wellness technologies over time.
“Energy management isn’t where we might expect it to be yet,” Griffiths says. “But challenges around pollution and airflow will influence the landscape going forward.”
Delhi NCR amid severe pollution in Winter 2024, credit: Ravneesh Singh Klair
Multigenerational living
Where India diverges most strikingly from global trends is its detachment from assisted living needs.
“Multigenerational living is very common,” Griffiths explains. “Families live together, often across multiple adjacent homes, to support each other day to day.”
As a result, the assisted living technologies gaining a foothold in Europe and North America are unlikely to do the same in India.
“They’d never dream of putting their parents into an assisted environment,” she says. “They adjust their own lives to accommodate them. That’s a deeply ingrained cultural value.”
Design and build community
CEDIA prioritises global engagement with architects, interior designers and developers - India being no exception.
“We’ve invested heavily in our Design & Build programme,” Griffiths says, highlighting the initiative’s mission to centralise industry terminology worldwide.
In India, this content has become both an educational and marketing tool. Outreach instructors regularly lead groups of 30-40 design and build professionals, sometimes weekly, to help integrators articulate their value.
“It’s been really well adopted,” she says. “And there’s an altruistic element too, around raising the profile of the industry in the design community.”
Education, language and connection
While online education plays an important role, India’s linguistic variety makes face-to-face training increasingly rich.
“English is common for technical training, but comprehension can still be a challenge,” Griffiths explains. “In a classroom, someone can translate key concepts into Hindi or other regional languages. That makes a huge difference.”
"Challenges around pollution and airflow will influence the landscape going forward.”
India’s collaborative, community-led culture also favours in-person engagement; Griffiths expects future research to show increased uptake of face-to-face education where available.
Workforce development, long-term growth
Like much of the global industry, India faces workforce challenges. CEDIA is exploring apprenticeships, trade-school engagement and funding initiatives through the CEDIA Foundation, launched last year.
Progress can be slow, particularly when government infrastructure is involved, but Griffiths remains optimistic.
“There’s so much work we can do to raise awareness of what a great career this is,” she says. “India represents a massive growth opportunity – not just for CEDIA, but for the residential technology industry as a whole.”
Main image credits: Harvepino/Shutterstock.com