Smart Home Tech Built Right Into the Door

At CES, the founders of August Home unveiled Doma, which aims to transform doors into motorized units with embedded smart lock, video doorbell, and more.

Paul Ragusa

Feb. 13, 2026

5 min read

Key Highlights

The creators of August Home returned to CES with Doma, a startup that embeds smart lock technology, motorized auto-open/close, facial recognition, radar sensors, and a multi-point electronic lock directly into the door itself — eliminating the battery, alignment, and reliability issues that have long plagued retrofit smart locks.
Doma uses Ultra-Wideband for frictionless homeowner authentication, supports Matter for broad smart home compatibility, and is hardwired for continuous operation with no visible components — representing a fundamental rethinking of residential access control rather than another incremental lock upgrade.
Doma-enabled doors will be available through partner manufacturers and home builders starting Summer 2026 at pricing comparable to a premium door with hardware and electronics purchased separately — positioning it as a high-end residential opportunity for integrators already working in the luxury new construction and smart home markets.

This article originally appeared in the February 2026 issue of Security Business magazine. Don’t forget to mention Security Business magazine on LinkedIn or our other social handles if you share it.

Photo: Doma

Doma reunites Yves Behar (left) and Jason Johnson, creators of the smart lock brand August Home, who sold the brand to ASSA ABLOY in 2018.

The creators of August Home brought their new startup company, Doma, to the Pepcom event at CES, unveiling Doma Intelligent Doors, which embed smart lock capabilities along with automatic opening and closing capabilities right into the door itself.

Doma reunites Jason Johnson and Yves Behar, creators of the smart lock brand August Home, which became a household success with locks integrated into millions of homes. Johnson and Behar sold the company to Yale – a division of ASSA ABLOY at the time – in 2018 and have since collaborated with top engineers from August to develop the Doma system.

“In essence, we wanted to rethink the whole access control space,” says Johnson, Doma co-founder and CEO. “Smart locks are great – obviously, I have made a few smart locks – but some of the big drawbacks are that they are battery-powered, and the batteries have to be replaced. Also, the deadbolts themselves, the mechanism could be misaligned, so you can't lock the door if the bolt's not flowing smoothly. So, we rethought the whole mechanism and created a smart lock built into the edge of the door.”

Starting with doors and windows, Johnson says Doma is creating the brain and nervous system of the intelligent home, noting, “Doma’s mission is to make intelligence a part of the home’s foundation, as fundamental as electricity or plumbing.”

The motorized door opens and closes when it senses an authorized individual approaching, using UWB technology.

Doma was created in collaboration with door and window manufacturers, including Kolbe Windows & Doors, GlassCraft, MasterGrain, Doors & More, Artema, and Liberty Openings, with each partner bringing distinct aesthetic and manufacturing expertise, from premium construction to high-efficiency thermal and acoustic insulation systems.

Built-in Intelligence

The heart of the system is Doma Intelligence, built-in software that transforms the doors from passive entryways to active, aware, and responsive parts of the home. Doma creators point out that their built-into-the-door WelcomeDrive technology creates the first residential doors to feature an integrated, motorized opener and closer.

“Doma is our answer to what the smart home was always meant to be – intelligence that disappears into the architecture, working quietly in the background to make life simpler, safer, and more human,” says Yves Behar, Doma co-founder, who adds that fragmented devices, unreliable apps, and complex systems have long hindered the promise of a truly connected home.

Doma hopes to redefine this landscape by integrating advanced sensor technology into the fabric of the home.

Embedded security and identity sensors include advanced radar, motion, and facial recognition sensors that detect movement and identity for frictionless and secure access. The door also features an electronic, high-security multi-point lock and an interior security and home control panel that features a video-based peephole system.

The hardware and sensors are built invisibly into the door’s core, preserving the aesthetic integrity of wood, fiberglass, or metal finishes. That means no batteries, bridges, or visible components – each system is powered and hardwired for continuous operation.

All components support the Matter standard and are designed for maximum compatibility with existing and future home systems, including Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Savant, and more. Additionally, all electronics and motors can be serviced without requiring the door to be removed.

Live interview with Jason Johnson from CES!

UWB a Key Component

The WelcomeDrive motorized opener and closer authenticates the homeowner and opens the door automatically as they approach using Ultra-Wideband (UWB), and then securely closes it.

Johnson points out that it was important to be future-thinking, which is why Doma is embracing UWB and facial recognition technology. “With August, we dreamed of UWB,” he explains. “BLE is good, but UWB is the best. And your face is good too, so we have a stereoscopic sensor that can scan your face and can detect whether you're wearing a mask or not. And if your phone is dead, you can scan your face and still get in.”

Beyond the door, Johnson says the company will also introduce Intelligent Windows that will feature motorized opening and closing as well as electronic lock and unlock, air quality sensors, and indoor/outdoor radar sensing to monitor a home’s occupancy and security.

The windows will keep the home secure, protect against weather, and open and close based on air quality, HVAC systems, and the presence and behavior of occupants – saving homeowners on heating and cooling, and eliminating the need for standalone air purifiers.

Availability

Each door is made to order, blending the craftsmanship of its maker with the embedded intelligence and robotics.

The door includes an embedded video doorbell, as well as an embedded smart lock.

“There are millions of smart lock users out there who are tired of swapping batteries [and] are tired of reliability issues,” says Johnson, noting that while users will have to replace the whole door, they gain intelligence and future-proofing. “You get a lot more [than just a smart lock] – there are a lot of other bells and whistles that make it worth the upgrade.”

Johnson says Doma is working with more than a dozen manufacturers in various stages, and that Doma-enabled doors will be available through partner manufacturers, dealers, and home builders starting in Summer 2026, with pricing equivalent to the price of a premium entry door, hardware, and electronics purchased separately, depending on style, materials, and configuration. The windows will be shown in late Q1 and can be purchased through partner manufacturers and home builders starting in the fall of 2026.