In this 2023 interview, Shelly USA CEO Svetlin Todorov talked with Famadillo about smart-home automation for families, energy monitoring, security, privacy and the surprisingly practical value of being a little lazy.
Why “Laziness” Inspired Smart-Home Automation
Todorov said part of the inspiration behind Shelly’s relays, plugs and sensors was simply wanting technology to handle repetitive tasks.
He used “lazy” deliberately. His argument was that automating small chores can create extra time and reduce some of the mental clutter that comes with managing a home. For parents, that could mean fewer moments spent checking lights, doors or other routine tasks and more time focused on the family.
How Smart Homes Can Help Parents
Todorov saw home automation as useful throughout different stages of parenting. He pointed to routines, home monitoring and comfort as areas where connected devices could remove small bits of friction.
He also liked the idea of children seeing technology used for practical problem-solving rather than only entertainment.
Energy Monitoring and Home Alerts
Energy use was one of Todorov’s recurring themes. He said smart relays, plugs and power-monitoring devices could help families see where electricity was being used and automate devices that did not need to stay on.
He also described sensors as useful for alerts. Examples included detecting a basement leak, noticing an open door or window, and monitoring temperature or humidity in a child’s room.
Those examples were from Shelly’s 2023 product ecosystem. Specific devices, features and compatibility can change, so current product documentation matters when building an automation today.
How Todorov Used Shelly at Home
As a parent of two teenagers, Todorov said he installed smart relays and motion sensors to deal with lights being left on around the house.
He also described families using sensors to check nursery conditions, monitor whether a child arrived home, dim lights for bedtime and create automatic nightlights.
One of his more entertaining examples was a customer who connected lighting with a voice assistant and speakers so a command could trigger a family dance-party setup. Not every smart-home problem needs to involve a spreadsheet and an electricity bill.
Where Shelly Fit Into the IoT Market
Todorov said Shelly’s approach was to give customers flexible building blocks rather than assume every household needed the same setup.
He emphasized affordability and allowing families to decide how far they wanted to automate. The company, he said, wanted its products to solve ordinary problems instead of adding another complicated system that people then had to manage.
Privacy and Local Control
Todorov advised consumers to read how a connected device handles data before bringing it into the home. He said buyers should choose companies whose privacy and security practices match their comfort level.
In the 2023 interview, he said Shelly stored cloud data on servers in North America or Europe and offered products that could work over Wi-Fi without requiring cloud connectivity or a separate hub. That local-control option was important to people who wanted more control over what information left the home.
Those privacy and infrastructure details should be checked against Shelly’s current policies before purchase because cloud services, app architecture and security settings can change.
Europe and the United States
Todorov, a European living in the United States, said one of the clearest differences he noticed was the urgency around household energy costs. He believed Western European consumers were especially focused on monitoring consumption because electricity prices had become a major household expense.
American families cared about energy costs too, he said, but the pressure felt different. That made power-monitoring features a larger part of the smart-home conversation in Europe at the time.
The useful theme across Todorov’s answers was not “make everything smart.” It was to automate the repetitive things that genuinely save time, money or worry—and leave the rest of the house alone.
For another look at connected home technology, read our Vivint smart thermostat review.
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