Hi, I'm Alan Byrne

I love automating things!

Systems Engineer turned Product Manager

I started off my professional career as a systems engineer and software developer, managing large corporate IT systems and developing software on the side.

I later realised that I wasn't a very good software developer and I preferred to be speaking directly to customers in order to learn what I could do to help them make their lives easier. This led me to become a product manager, working alongside customers and software developers to create products and experiences which bring delight and make lives easier.

Home Assistant

I first started dabbling with home automation a few years ago when I bought an Amazon Echo device and some Philips Hue lights. You couldn't do much back then except turn on the lights using your voice or get Hue to turn the lights on at sunset.

Not long after a friend of mine introduced me to Home Assistant which blew my mind with its level of flexibility and interoperability. It was quite hard to get started, but my background in software development helped me understand the concepts and create my first automations.

YouTube Channel

In 2021 I decided it was time to give back to the Home Assistant community that had helped me learn about the platform. I wanted to find a way to give other people, who didn't have an engineering and software development background, access to the power of Home Assistant integrations and automations

I created the Home Automation Guy YouTube channel to share with others what I've learned about Home Automation to try and make it more accessible to normal people.

If you want to get in touch with me you can check out my contact page.