Home automation and security devices are not standardized on the software level. Their functions for the users are well described (everybody has a certain expectation what a door sensor or switchable plug does)  but how the signals are processed is proprietary to every manufacturer. If a brand wants to offer a solution that works across the different sensors and switches, they have to come to their own standards and force the suppliers to match these standards.

The devices (sensors and switches) provide in principle very simple data compared to a camera: on/off, open/close, smoke/no smoke, motion detected or not for the lowest level and a single value for dimming the light or reading a temperature. Data also comes in a much lower frequency than from a camera: 1 bit per minute (or less) compared with 1 MBit per second.

The devices deliver or receive this small amount of data through a proprietary wireless channel that will be connected to a gateway. It’s not the device that has to be changed for a standardized approach, it’s sufficient if the gateway communicates with a number of devices, understands their protocol and translates it into a standard format. Software on the cloud server can deal with the standardized data format without adapting to manufacturer’s specialties. All hardware and manufacturer dependent information is kept in the firmware of the gateway.