---
title: "Who am I? 👨‍💻 | The Optimization Guy"
description: "About The Optimization Guy"
url: "https://www.the-optimization-guy.com/en/about/"
lang: "en"
---

# Who am I?

Pierre, aka *The Optimization Guy*

A smart home enthusiast, daily optimization fanatic and tinkerer, I originally just wanted to "better manage my heating"… then I discovered Home Assistant, and I never really left.

Here, I share what I set up at home: automations, integrations, energy monitoring and fine-tuning for everyday comfort.

You'll find detailed real-world use cases, ready-to-adapt code and honest feedback on what works… and what doesn't, all with one obsession: optimize without over-complicating.

## My journey

### The origin story: From home automation to global optimization

My journey into home automation started very pragmatically, driven by two essential needs: security and heating control.

I started with mainstream solutions like **Blink**, then **Tapo**. These tools helped me discover the potential of connected homes… but also their limitations:

- restricted automations
- cloud dependency
- closed ecosystems
- near-zero interoperability between brands

### The turning point: Taking back control

Very quickly, these limitations became blockers. I then chose to migrate to **Home Assistant**, and progressively replace my devices with **Zigbee**\-based, local and interoperable solutions. This change marked a real turning point:

- a centralized system
- advanced automations
- coherent logic
- greater reliability
- less dependency on cloud services

### Today: A setup that keeps evolving

Since then, my setup has never stopped evolving.

## My favourite automations

Some automations have become so natural that I don't even think about them anymore, and that's precisely the sign that they're working perfectly.

### Wake up to music

Five minutes after I wake up, my amplifier turns on automatically and plays a Jazz playlist on shuffle. No manual action, no screen: just the right atmosphere to start the day.

### Smart outdoor lighting

I repurposed indoor motion sensors, installed in weatherproof junction boxes outside. They automatically trigger the lights around the house whenever movement is detected. Simple, reliable, and incredibly practical every day.

### Mailbox detection

My mailbox is connected: mail delivered = instant notification on my phone, mail collected = the notification disappears automatically. No unnecessary reminders, no doubt: the information is accurate and contextualized.

## My stack & how I work

### The foundation

- **Home Assistant Green** as the core of the system
- a **local-first** approach
- automations designed as real **processes**, not gadgets

### The AI co-pilot

I also developed a Home Assistant expert agent, used as a co-pilot to design, maintain and optimize automations.

Today, a large part of my work relies on **Claude Code** and its **MCP**, used as an automation engineering tool.

AI isn't there to "do things for me", but to improve the quality of decisions and the consistency of the system.

## The real challenge in home automation (WAF included)

The biggest challenge in home automation isn't the installation, maintenance or bug fixes… it's getting your household to accept and use it. A technically perfect automation is worthless if:

- it surprises people
- it complicates everyday use
- it creates frustration

User experience always comes before technical performance.

## Current & upcoming projects

### Connected bird feeder

Capable of detecting and recognizing bird species.

### System monitoring

With intelligent alert prioritization.

### Discord

As a central notification and supervision tool.

### n8n

For complex optimization and alerting workflows.

## Where to start?

Three articles to discover the blog, from heating to the mistakes not to repeat.

- [Tado: real gas savings and honest feedback](https://www.the-optimization-guy.com/en/blog/tado-review-2-years-gas-savings/): Real-world feedback after 2 years with a Tado thermostat and heads: kWh, euros saved, comparison method and savings simulator.

- [9 mistakes I made when starting with Home Assistant](https://www.the-optimization-guy.com/en/blog/home-assistant-mistakes-to-avoid/): Real-world feedback after 50 devices: batteries, Wi-Fi, cameras, hubs… The traps to avoid and the simple choices for a stable foundation.

- [Wall-Mounted Home Assistant Tablet: My Complete Setup](https://www.the-optimization-guy.com/en/blog/wall-mounted-home-assistant-tablet/): How I turned a Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE 11" into a permanent wall-mounted smart home dashboard with Fully Kiosk Browser: hidden cable, battery preservation, automatic wake-up. My honest take after several weeks.