Introducing Aliro 1.0: A Unified Standard to Transform the Access Control Ecosystem

DAVIS, Calif., Feb. 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Connectivity Standards Alliance (Alliance) announced today the release of the Aliro 1.0 specification, a new communication protocol and credential standard designed to revolutionize how users interact with access points in every aspect of their lives. While the convenience of unlocking a smart home lock often captures public attention, Aliro is built for broader impact, aiming to streamline interoperability across varied access control use cases, including corporate offices, universities, hospitality venues, and single and multi-family residential homes.

Driving Adoption Through Major Wallet Integration

A key differentiator for Aliro is the confirmed commitment from the world's leading mobile wallet ecosystems. By aligning with Apple, Google, and Samsung, Aliro offers a standardized digital credential experience leveraging the smartphones and wearables people use every day. This strategic collaboration expands adoption pathways, empowering users to move easily between homes, workplaces, and public spaces using the secure digital wallets native to their operating systems.

"Aliro is solving the fragmentation that has held back digital key adoption, replacing it with a single interoperability standard built through Alliance Member collaboration. By connecting the access control industry directly to leading mobile wallet ecosystems, it delivers a secure, frictionless experience that goes well beyond the front door. Lower integration complexity means faster innovation and shorter time to market. This is how the future of access control gets built," said Tobin Richardson, President and CEO, Connectivity Standards Alliance.

A Unified Standard for Secured, Seamless Access

The Aliro 1.0 specification establishes a robust framework utilizing asymmetric cryptography to ensure secured and trusted interactions between user devices and readers, while respecting user privacy. This standardized protocol is designed for broad application across the entire access control ecosystem, providing a reliable experience in corporate offices, universities, hospitality venues, single and multi-family homes, and even areas without network coverage, such as underground parking garages and elevators. To meet diverse installation requirements, the specification supports a variety of transport technologies, including Near Field Communication (NFC) for tap-to-access, Bluetooth Low Energy (Bluetooth LE) for user-initiated long-range communication, and Bluetooth LE plus Ultra-Wideband (UWB) for a seamless, secured hands-free authentication method. To ensure global reliability, Aliro includes a comprehensive certification program and supporting test suites managed through Authorized Test Labs.

This initiative unifies a global collective of over 220 Member companies - from lock manufacturers to silicon vendors and mobile platform leaders - working together to pave the way for a better, more secure mobile access experience. Through close collaboration, Member companies, including Apple, ASSA ABLOY, Google LLC, Infineon Technologies AG, Last Lock, Inc., Samsung Electronics, and STMicroelectronics pooled technologies, expertise, and innovations to enable the Aliro 1.0 specification, with Apple, Allegion, Aqara, Google LLC, HID, Kastle, Kwikset, Last Lock, Inc., Nordic Semiconductor, Nuki Home Solutions, NXP® Semiconductors, Qorvo, Samsung Electronics, STMicroelectronics, expected to be the first to achieve Aliro 1.0 certification.

Empowering the Value Chain

Aliro provides tangible benefits across the entire industry value chain by lowering implementation barriers and reducing overall complexity for stakeholders. For manufacturers, the standard acts as a universal arbiter for interoperability certification, significantly reducing research and development costs while simplifying the integration process with new partners. Integrators benefit from this streamlined approach through easier setup and more efficient troubleshooting across devices from multiple hardware providers. Ultimately, Aliro provides system owners with simplified maintenance and the flexibility to mix and match vendor-independent hardware and software across a wide variety of user devices.

The Path Forward

The release of Aliro 1.0 is the foundation of a living standard, not a one-time effort. This coalition is already looking toward future phases to integrate upcoming market and ecosystem requirements, such as expanded use cases like secure key sharing, while maintaining backward compatibility to ensure that current implementations are not compromised as the technology matures. By building this infrastructure to evolve alongside the market it serves, we are ensuring that Aliro remains the enduring, interoperable layer for universal digital credentials. As the specification enters the certification and commercialization phases, this collective effort stands ready to deliver the scalability required for long-term global success.

Learn more about Aliro and access the Aliro 1.0 specification documents.

About the Connectivity Standards Alliance

The Connectivity Standards Alliance is the foundation and future of the Internet of Things (IoT). Established in 2002, its wide-ranging global membership collaborates to create and evolve universal open standards for the products transforming the way we live, work, and play. With its Members' deep and diverse expertise, robust certification programs, and a full suite of open IoT solutions, the Alliance is leading the movement toward a more intuitive, imaginative, and useful world.

The Connectivity Standards Alliance Board of Directors is comprised of executives from Allegion, Amazon, Apple, ASSA ABLOY, Bosch, CableLabs, Comcast, Espressif, Eve by ABB, Fortune Brands, Google, Haier, Huawei, IKEA, Infineon Technologies AG, LEEDARSON, Legrand, LG Electronics, Lutron Electronics, Midea, Nordic Semiconductor, NXP Semiconductors, OPPO, Resideo Technologies, Samsung Electronics, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Signify (Philips Hue and WiZ), Silicon Labs, Somfy, STMicroelectronics, Tuya, and Verizon.

Learn more about the Alliance at www.csa-iot.org, and follow us on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Alliance Member Executive Quotes:

Allegion: "Aliro is synonymous with interoperability -- and key to pushing our industry forward in the future of secure access. Allegion's leadership in the Connectivity Standards Alliance reflects our dedication to driving open standards that benefit customers, partners and the entire ecosystem." — Ryan Kincaid, Director of Global Technology

Aqara: "We pride ourselves on providing smart home experiences that make people's lives simpler. Part of this journey has been to be both a contributor to and early adopter of new technologies and standards, whether it's HomeKit, Matter, or now Aliro. We recently brought proximity-based unlock to our product line up with the Smart Lock U400 using UWB technology and Apple HomeKey. With Aliro, it is now easier for us and others in the access control space to bring this same, powerful experience to consumers by supporting one standard that works and is supported everywhere. This launch will unlock a new layer of convenience for homeowners, and Aqara is proud to be a part of it. We look forward to bringing Aliro to the U400 in the near future as well as other locks in our portfolio." — Cathy You, Senior Vice President, Head of Global Division

Durin: "Aliro is unlocking a new era for access where your phone or wearable becomes a secure, interoperable key." — Herman Yau, CEO & Co-Founder 

eufy: "Offering the most choice to current and future customers is one of the key pillars of the eufy Security brand strategy and product portfolio. The Aliro digital access protocol gives users another accurate, simple and powerful way to control access in and out of their homes, small businesses and other valued property." — John Fabian, Vice President of Sales and Operations 

Infineon Technologies AG: "By providing interoperable access credentials and a standardized communication protocol for smartphones and wearables, Aliro enables a seamless experience for home and office openings as well as for industrial settings. Through the cooperative efforts of Infineon, jointly with other work group members across the ecosystem, consumers will benefit from an easier and more secured mobile experience." — Bjoern Scharfen, Ecosystem and Partner Management Digital Security & Identity 

Kastle: "Aliro marks a turning point for mobile access. By creating a common standard, it gives customers the flexibility and confidence to move beyond closed systems. Kastle is proud to stand with industry and technology leaders to accelerate the next generation of secure, seamless access." — Haniel Lynn, CEO

Kastle: "Commercial real estate has long faced fragmented access systems, multiple credentials, and too often, reliance on outdated proximity cards that create real security gaps. Aliro establishes a secure, interoperable standard that unifies base building and tenant access. Kastle has led the industry in advancing modern, standards-based solutions, and we're proud to support Aliro alongside leading innovators. This is a defining step toward a seamless, secure mobile experience across commercial real estate." — Haniel Lynn, CEO 

Last Lock: "I'm excited for Aliro's release and what it unlocks for mobile credentials: open standards that enable accessible, high-quality experiences on everyone's phone. Last Lock aims to make electronic access practical—deployable in the real world, and able to evolve as properties modernize. Aliro strengthens that path by creating a standardized foundation that makes mobile credentialing easier to implement and scale across diverse building environments." — Jack Ryan, CEO

Last Lock: "Last Lock will be building with Aliro across our portfolio, our tools, and our enablement stack for other builders—bringing wallet experiences on everyone's phone to everyday buildings. Starting at launch, the Last Lock Core series will support Aliro credentialing from day one, certified through our participation in the Aliro validation events." — Jack Ryan, CEO

Last Lock: "We're excited about Aliro because it reduces complexity, strengthens security, and improves the user experience across ecosystems. At Last Lock, we build for what works today and what's next as the industry evolves. An open foundation for mobile credentials makes access easier to deploy and scale." — Jack Ryan, CEO 

M.C. Dean: "Aliro is a major advancement for the security industry, creating a foundation of openness, interoperability, and trust. By establishing an open standard, mobile-first security protocol between access readers, mobile devices, and cards, Aliro addresses customer challenges around automated low-cost credential issuance, asymmetric encryption, and scalability. It truly unlocks the full potential of mobile wallet credentials—delivering a consistent user experience while creating a converged path for innovation among manufacturers and solution providers. As a CSA member, we're proud to support and contribute to the progress this standard is accelerating." — Eric Dean, Security & Electronic Systems Chief Technology Officer

Nordic Semiconductor: "Aliro raises the bar for secure and interoperable access control, and we recognize the Connectivity Standards Alliance for uniting the industry behind a common standard. Nordic is proud to support this milestone as an early provider of certified silicon and software. When ecosystems align on open standards, it simplifies development and strengthens user trust — and Aliro is an important step forward on both fronts." — Øyvind Strøm, EVP Short-Range 

Nuki Home Solutions: "True innovation in smart access demands both courage and long-term conviction. For more than a decade, Nuki has shaped the smart lock category in Europe with that exact mindset. Launching the world's first electronic door lock with native Matter support was a significant industry milestone; bringing Aliro to our customers' doors is the natural continuation of that journey. As pioneers in smart access, we support open specifications not as a choice – but as a core conviction. Users deserve seamless interoperability and future-proof technology, regardless of the ecosystem they choose. We are convinced that Aliro 1.0 will unlock the next era of secure, connected access." — Jürgen Pansy, Co-Founder & Chief Innovation Officer 

NXP Semiconductors: "NXP is at the forefront of enabling secure, hands free access to our homes and buildings, driven by our leadership in NFC, UWB, Bluetooth LE, and advanced security technologies. As a long-standing board member of the Connectivity Standards Alliance, our contributions to the Aliro standard are helping bring forward an interoperable foundation that delivers a more autonomous, hands-free access experience for consumers." — Charles Dachs, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Secure Connected Edge

Silicon Labs: "Aliro is a big deal because it provides standards-based access and transactions between the homeowner's mobile wallet and their smart door lock. MG24 gives innovators a single, secure wireless platform to validate credentials, protect keys, and do all this at the speed end-users demand thanks to the MG24's cryptography accelerator. As the industry rallies behind Aliro, Silicon Labs is focused on helping manufacturers get to certified, market-ready products faster." — Colin Cureton, Vice President of Product Lines & Home

STMicroelectronics: "Next step will be key to give device makers everything they need to build Aliro-compliant products. ST offers the complete secure connectivity portfolio required to support all three Aliro configurations - from NFC only to NFC + Bluetooth Low Energy, up to NFC + Bluetooth® LE + UWB for hands free access. With its Aliro technology expertise, long term solution availability and decades of experience in security and connectivity, ST enables customers to accelerate development and confidently bring next generation access solutions to market." — Luca Verre, Group Vice President, Microcontrollers, Digital ICs and RF products Group Strategy

The Access Control Collective: "Aliro is not just a standard. It's a forcing function. For four decades, our industry built proprietary access-control systems that served a fragmented market but ultimately left end users carrying the cost. What the Connectivity Standards Alliance has done here is rare. They engaged early, built the right coalition, and created a neutral trust layer that the entire ecosystem, from technology companies to integrators, can rely on. This is the kind of industry moment that doesn't announce itself loudly. It arrives quietly, becomes the assumption everyone works from, and ten years from now will feel inevitable. The difference is that the Alliance didn't wait for the inevitable. They built it." — Lee Odess, CEO

Wavelynx: "Physical access is transitioning from proprietary symmetric cryptography to open, public key standards marking one of the most significant architectural shifts in decades. With Aliro and the recently released LEAF Verified credential, the question is not which one will win. It is how they work together. Both are two pillars of the transition to public key encryption, LEAF Verified serves the physical credential and Aliro serves digital credentials. Wavelynx APEX and Ethos readers will support both and we are committed to the continued collaboration with the Alliance on Aliro." — Julia Webb-Twoomey, VP of Credentials, Wallet and LEAF

SOURCE Connectivity Standards Alliance