By Yasmin Hashmi
KNX Association’s Core Team gives its views on the most exciting developments currently underway and planned for the future.
Jean-Christophe Krieger, President, KNX Association
The Core Team (President, Vice-President, CEO, and CFO/CTO) has established several working groups within the KNX Executive Board (KEB), in close collaboration with the KNX Technical Board (KTB). As a result, we now have structured action plans, streamlined reporting, and accelerated decision-making.
Our strategy and priorities remain unchanged: to deliver peace of mind and create a positive impact on climate change. In other words, we are making KNX simpler, more accessible to partners, and significantly strengthening our contribution to making homes and buildings more energy-efficient.
To demonstrate that KNX is continuously evolving to adapt to international market and environmental changes, here are some examples of exciting developments:
For Simplicity
- We will launch a new KNX.org website at Light + Building 2026, featuring an improved user experience, persona-driven content, and AI integration.
- Our three-year ETS roadmap is fully focused on addressing key pain points, improving time efficiency for ETS users, and making KNX more accessible overall.
- Thanks to KNX Secure, we are ready and compliant with new regulations such as the Cybersecurity Resilience Act (CRA).
For Innovation
- We are working on multiple initiatives to integrate AI and enhance efficiency.
- We are developing tools to enable data-driven decision-making.
- We continue to advance KNX IoT, delivering a KNX IoT stack across multiple platforms to simplify onboarding and adoption.
For Decarbonisation
- Our focus is on energy management, and we have already delivered the first set of new functional blocks (PV, EV, HP, batteries).
- We are mapping KNX to dedicated energy management standards such as Sunspec and SAREF.
- We have initiated a project to position KNX as ‘The European-made Technology for Building Efficiency’ within the EU Commission.
Community
KNX would not hold a leading position in home and building automation without its outstanding community. This comprises manufacturers, partners, training centres, NextGen educational institutions, freelance tutors, scientific partners, national groups, user clubs, associated partners, test labs, and startups.
I also expect our community to adapt to ongoing changes, emerging trends, and market evolution. Here are some key priorities:
- Prepare for and anticipate the Cybersecurity Resilience Act (CRA), which will impact how partners deliver and maintain home and building projects.
- Don’t delay migrating to ETS6! Support for ETS5 ended in late 2025. All investments are focused on ETS6 and beyond to address major pain points and deliver significant efficiency gains.
- Pursue projects that enhance existing KNX installations with energy management capabilities. The European Performance Buildings Directive (EPBD) offers substantial business opportunities.
- Start leveraging the AI engine integrated into our upcoming KNX.org website.
‘KNX Inside’ everywhere!
KNX has just celebrated its 35th anniversary, and I am convinced that with all our initiatives and projects – and with our fantastic worldwide community of passionate and committed people – KNX has an exciting future ahead!
KNX will continue to be the leading global open standard for home and building automation for decades to come, not because of our long-standing tradition, but because we constantly evolve – both technically and strategically. We never rest on our laurels, and that is exactly why KNX is always one step ahead.
I look forward to seeing you all at Light + Building 2026 in Frankfurt, Hall 12.0.
Klaus Waechter, Vice-President, KNX Association
We are currently implementing several ‘North Star’ initiatives (Editor’s note: ‘North Star’ is KNX Association’s strategic programme to maximise KNX’s penetration rate in buildings). The goal is to lead KNX into the future, increase efficiency, and strengthen our positioning within the regulatory landscape. While these are multi-year projects, we expect to see an initial impact within just a few months.
Keeping up-to-date with regulations
We encourage our community to prepare for upcoming regulations such as the CRA, and to read the latest KNX news carefully to ensure timely adoption of our enhancements. With additional directives from Brussels such as the EPBD, NIS2, and the Data Act driving legal revisions in all 27 EU member states, it is vital to keep a close watch on these changes.
Exploring AI
KNX will continue its path towards digitalisation, implementing it incrementally. Artificial intelligence will also become integral to the KNX ecosystem, just as it has elsewhere, and we strongly advise everyone to start exploring this topic today. There is virtually no area where KNX is used that will not be influenced by AI, either now or in the near future.
Joost Demarest, CTO, KNX Association
KNX continues to invest in its technical future, and now has a dedicated development team focused on making their own KNX IoT open stack meet the stringent KNX certification requirements. There are still some gaps to close, but we are confident that we will be able to announce the final certification by the Light + Building 2026 show. What’s more, by then, KNX also plans to offer the same stack for FreeRTOS and Zephyr platforms, next to the current code running on Windows and Linux. By accessing the KNX Github account, a newcomer will then make their first KNX compatible prototype in less than a day on their preferred platform.
Products – so many possibilities
This development will open up an unrivalled number of possible new products in new domains, for instance in energy management. Also, for the IPv4 predecessor to KNX IoT, i.e. KNXnet/IP, an extension of the protocol is currently being worked on. So, both traditional KNX manufacturers, as well as newcomers, will be able to embark on conquering new market segments with KNX.
A team effort
I would like to take this opportunity to put the KNX Team in the spotlight, including our President and Vice-President. With their perseverance, we continue to improve our tooling to make it more efficient and simple, to serve the customer to the best of our ability when licensing the tools or the technology, extending the KNX standard in a consistent way, bringing the technology to the attention of EU decision makers and international standardisation bodies, and operating robust certification schemes – all backed up by strong PR and marcom activities. Every single one of them is a vital cog in this 35-year-old wonderful machine!
Heinz Lux, CEO, KNX Association
I am so proud of what KNX Association and its global community have achieved over the past 35 years, and am very excited about where we are headed in the coming decades. Our ‘North Star’ strategic programme will ensure that KNX remains empowered and relevant for the next 30 years through innovation and enhanced community engagement.
Our vision is built upon three primary pillars: providing ‘peace of mind’ for customers and partners; delivering a positive environmental impact to help stakeholders and the community combat climate change; and ensuring that the ‘KNX Inside’ hallmark serves as a seal of quality and interoperability for smart home and building automation.
Strategic drivers
These pillars are supported by three strategic drivers:
• Simplification: Streamlining operations through an updated web and marketing presence, a clear ETS software roadmap, and supporting and developing our national groups.
• Innovation: Embracing the future by integrating Artificial Intelligence, migrating toward IP-based solutions with KNX IoT, and evolving the underlying business model.
• Decarbonisation: Leading the charge in energy management – specifically targeting EVs, photovoltaics, heat pumps, and batteries, whilst pushing for standardisation and the transition from microgrids to DC power.
In our drive to combat climate change, it is important that we take our community with us, and give everyone a chance to make a difference. It is clear how committed KNX Association is to a smarter, more sustainable, and highly-efficient built environment, in which we can all play our part.
Yasmin Hashmi is the Editor of KNXtoday magazine.
