After strapping cameras to thousands of faces, sending robot cars on Taco Bell runs and floating WiFi balloons in the sky, Google has turned their attention to your home with the announcement today that they will acquire smart thermostat company Nest for $3.2 billion in cash.

Nest, which was founded by "father of the iPod" Tony Fadell and former iPhone engineer Matt Rogers, launched the Ellen-approved Nest Learning Thermostat back in 2011. The product, in case you're not familiar, saves energy in your home by learning your daily habits and turns off the heat when you leave the house. (It can't, however, open your pod bay doors, yet.) The company's latest product is a smart smoke and carbon monoxide detector called Protect, that speaks with a human voice rather than chirping at you annoyingly when you screw up dinner. What a world.

Nest will continue to operate "with its own distinct brand identity." According to Nest's own announcement Sergey Brin, a man who is bafflingly allowed to sport Crocs in public, has been keeping his Glass-augmented eye on Nest since before the company launched in 2011. Google Ventures even threw Nest some cash during their funding rounds, as they did with car-hailing service Uber last summer.

Previously: Video: Google's Self-Driving Car Makes A Taco Bell Run
[Google]
[Nest Announcement]