Nest Labs, the firm behind mobile-enabled smart thermostats and smoke alarms, is opening its platform to third-party developers – a move that could provide a central role in the emerging Internet of Things (IoT) market.

Nest, which was acquired by Google earlier this year for what seemed the hefty sum of $3.2 billion, will allow developers to create apps that communicate with its devices.

The firm is also working directly with some companies. It has already integrated its platform with a number of companies including Mercedes-Benz, Jawbone, Whirlpool, LIFX, Logitech and IFTTT.

Such partners can link their applications to Nest’s thermostat, which will act as an information hub for devices in the home, said the firm’s founder and vice president of Engineering Matt Rogers, talking to The Wall Street Journal.

For instance, a user’s Mercedes car could deliver a command via their iPhone a certain distance from home to turn on the house heating.

Competitors to Nest in this new emerging market include AT&T as well as startups such as Quirky, SmartThings and Revolv.

Meanwhile Apple signalled its interest with the announcement of its HomeKit API at WWDC earlier this month.

Other partners who will integrate with Nest this autumn include Chamberlain and Google itself.

As Google looks to leverage Nest as a business, the privacy angle will loom large. The firm will share limited information about its users with Google and other partners, said Rogers. Users will also need to opt in for each new device, he said.