Got me thinking about some business things, and apologies if this goes off topic....
50 years ago there were a wealth of books for electronic hobbyists to build things like this - home automation, home security, plant irrigation systems and suchlike.
Later an industry sprang up to make products for this market which was initially niche and geeky. Small companies became big companies. Big companies became shitty, extractive, exploitative monopoly companies as the author describes.
Today we lament an apparent choice between "convenience" and "too much work to do yourself". The cynics and naysayers are always keen to point out just how few people can accomplish anything like this - and that is indeed true.
But between the lonely hobbyist with soldering iron in hand, and the big technology company was an era that seems almost dead today (for many reasons like customer support and reliable sourcing). It was the kit movement. Many of the early microcomputers were in fact kits. Clive Sinclair first offered the ZX80 as a "solder it yourself" job. Heathkit hifi and music synthesisers were a big thing for a while.
Many people who couldn't build a home system like this might be interested in a DIY solution if they had a big helping hand up. I wonder what happened to the kit economy and why it doesn't work as a business model any more.