🎙️ Natural-Language Voice for Smart Homes

Authorized Josh.ai Installer in Cincinnati

Josh.ai is voice control built specifically for Control4 smart homes — no wake-word gymnastics, conversational, with deep integration. We’re an authorized installer for Cincinnati, NKY, and Dayton.

Real Commands Real People Use

Say This, the House Responds

"OK Josh, movie time."

→ Projector warms up. Screen drops. Lights dim. Surround sound primes. Shades close. Sound levels itself.

"OK Josh, goodnight."

→ Bedrooms cool. Hallway lights down to 20%. Front door locks. Cameras arm. Alarm enables.

"OK Josh, getting hot in here."

→ It checks the thermostat in the room you’re in and drops the setpoint 2 degrees. Doesn’t touch the rest of the house.

"OK Josh, the kids are home."

→ Front door unlocks. Family room lights up. Their playlist starts in the kitchen and family room.

Josh.ai Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Josh.ai vs Alexa vs Google?

Alexa and Google were built for retail and search. Josh.ai was built specifically for smart homes — deep Control4 integration, no wake-word repetition, conversational (“set the kitchen brighter” instead of “Alexa, set kitchen lights to 80 percent”). It also doesn’t send your conversations to ad networks.

Do I need Control4 to run Josh.ai?

Josh.ai works best on Control4 systems but can also integrate with Lutron, Sonos, Ecobee, and many other smart home platforms. For maximum value, pair it with Control4.

Is Josh.ai always listening?

It listens for the wake word locally, but conversation processing can be set to local-only mode. No ads, no profile-building. Privacy-by-design.

How much does Josh.ai cost?

Hardware: $1,500-$3,500 per microphone unit (rooms get 1-2). Programming and integration: typically bundled into your broader Control4 install. Whole-home Josh.ai across 6-10 rooms: $15,000-$30,000.

What Josh.ai Actually Does in a House

Voice Control That Understands the Room, Not Just the Command

Most voice assistants make you talk like a computer: “Alexa, set Family Room Lamp Two to forty percent.” Josh.ai is built for the opposite. Say “it’s a little dark in here” and it knows which room you are in, which lights are relevant, and how far to bring them up. Say “play the Reds game in the kitchen and the patio” and it handles two zones, two sources, and the volume difference between indoors and outside. That context awareness is the reason we recommend it for Cincinnati families who want voice control but do not want to learn a new language for their own home.

Josh.ai is also private by design. It is built for the custom-installed home, not for advertising: no data harvesting, no listening for keywords to sell, and local processing for the everyday commands. For clients in Indian Hill, Hyde Park, and Mason who have opted out of consumer smart speakers for exactly that reason, Josh is usually the first voice platform they are comfortable putting in the bedroom.

It rarely stands alone. In most of our installs Josh.ai is the voice layer on top of Control4, Lutron, and Sonos — Control4 runs the scenes and the schedules, Lutron runs the lights and shades, Sonos or Sonance carries the music, and Josh is how the family talks to all of it. Josh Nano microphones disappear into the ceiling or wall; the Josh Core lives in the rack. We program the room names, the phrases your family actually uses, and the scenes, then refine them over the first few weeks.

Josh.ai voice control installed in a Cincinnati smart home by Phantom Sound
Josh.ai Questions

Josh.ai Installer FAQs

Is Josh.ai a replacement for Alexa or Google?

For most of our clients, yes — it replaces consumer speakers with a private, context-aware assistant built for whole-home control. Josh can also coexist with Alexa or Google if you want to keep them for shopping lists or timers.

Does Josh.ai work without Control4?

Josh.ai can control Lutron, Sonos, and many devices directly. For scenes that span lighting, shades, video, and climate, we pair it with Control4 so the automation logic lives in one place.

How private is it?

Josh.ai does not sell data or listen for advertising. Everyday commands are processed locally on the Josh Core in your rack, and there is a physical mute on every microphone.

What does a Josh.ai system cost?

Josh.ai is typically added to a smart home project rather than sold alone. Whole-home Control4 or Josh.ai systems that tie together lighting, audio, video, climate, and security typically run $15,000 to $50,000; see our pricing page for ranges.

Can you add Josh.ai to my existing Control4 or Lutron system?

Yes. If your system is current and on a solid network, adding Josh is usually a one-to-two day install plus programming.

Ready to Talk to Your House?