Apple will hold its "Welcome Home" event in New York on October 13 at 9AM ET, and the announcement slate is expected to center almost entirely on the smart home rather than on Macs or iPads.

The Verge, which published the event preview, reports that Apple plans refreshes for the Apple TV and the HomePod Mini alongside a brand-new smart home hub. A new software platform called homeOS could also debut, together with partner devices from LG.

What Apple is expected to announce?

According to the preview, the event agenda breaks down into several likely items:

• Refreshed Apple TV hardware
• An updated HomePod Mini
• An all-new smart home hub — Apple's first proper entry in the category
• A potential new platform branded homeOS
• Smart home devices from partner LG

Until now, Apple has primarily relied on existing devices rather than shipping a dedicated smart home hub. The new device would mark a strategy shift for Cupertino in a category where Amazon and Google have long sold purpose-built hubs and displays.

What won't appear on October 13?

One high-profile rumor is off the table for this event: the long-rumored touchscreen MacBook. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman — described by The Verge as the definitive source on Apple's internal plans — says the touchscreen MacBook will instead debut later this month, separate from the October 13 gathering.

That timing detail matters for Apple's product cadence. It splits the company's fall lineup into two waves: smart home hardware first, with the more speculative Mac form-factor change following on its own schedule.

Why this event matters for the smart home market

A dedicated hub, a possible homeOS platform layer, and third-party hardware from a major display maker like LG would together signal Apple's most coordinated push into the home to date. LG's involvement, if confirmed on stage, would extend Apple's ecosystem beyond first-party hardware in a category where interoperability has been the main barrier to adoption.

The October 13 event starts at 9AM ET. Expect pricing, availability dates, and the extent of LG's partnership to be the key commercial details revealed on stage.