And that hardware doesn't need to communicate with the cloud, see things like this zwave usb stick (which works GREAT for zwave with home assistant and a raspberry pi): https://aeotec.com/z-wave-usb-stick
I agree! I personally have a z-wave stick, hue bridge, lutron bridge, a custom IR transceiver, etc automated w/ hass. But I can see the temptation to buy a one-size-fits-all device which can communicate with all those products(or at least their other hubs).
