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What is Aliro™?
Standardized, Secure Connectivity for Next-Gen Access Control
About Ray Pan
Ray Pan is an Applications Engineer at Symmetry Electronics. He has a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from San Jose State University. With over 15 years of hands-on experience in the electronics industry, Ray serves as an excellent technical consulting resource for design engineers. Specializing in consumer and professional audio-video, FPGA, and mmWave applications–Ray develops insightful technical articles, conducts technical trainings for inside sales and customers, provides system architecture analyses, and interprets market trends covering technical products. Recognized for his talents and contributions, Ray is the proud recipient of the Lattice Semiconductor FAE of the Year 2020 Award for America.
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As smartphones and wearables replace physical keys, developers are expected to support seamless mobile access across devices, platforms, and ecosystems. Despite rapid advances, today’s smart locks and readers often rely on closed systems and non-standardized credentials, limiting interoperability and slowing innovation across the industry.
Developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA), Aliro™ is a new solution positioned to become the industry-standard access credential and communication protocol for unlocking doors using mobile devices. By defining a secure, interoperable application layer, Aliro enables consistency across smartphones, wearables, and access to readers regardless of hardware vendor or operating system.
What is Aliro™?
Aliro is a mobile credential standard that bridges the divide between access control providers and mobile device manufacturers. The specification is a versatile, cross-industry standard intended for deployment across a wide range of environments, from commercial offices and hospitality venues to university campuses and both single-family and multi-family residential buildings.
Reference Application: Combining Micro-Location Accuracy with Ultra-Low Power
To accelerate the development of Aliro- and Matter-enabled access control systems, Nordic Semiconductor and Qorvo have collaborated on a reference application that reduces integration complexity and time-to-market for smart lock and access reader designs.
Aliro works with multiple wireless technologies. The specification defines standardized communication methods using Near Field Communication (NFC) at 13.56 MHz, Bluetooth® Low Energy in the 2.4 GHz band, and Ultra-Wideband (UWB), typically operating on Channel 9 within the 7.75 GHz to 8.25 GHz frequency range.
Designed to complement, not replace, existing connectivity standards like Matter, Aliro focuses specifically on secure mobile access at the opening whereas Matter handles device-to-device command. For example, Matter enables a user to lock or unlock a door remotely or as part of a smart home automation, while Aliro securely authenticates a smartphone or wearable as a credential when the user arrives at the door.
Key Benefits
- Standards-Based Interoperability: Aliro defines a common, CSA-backed access credential and application layer that enables certified smartphones, wearables, and access readers to interoperate across vendors. This reduces dependency on proprietary mobile access implementations and lowers long-term integration risk.
- Security-First Access Architecture: Built by leading mobile and access control OEMs, Aliro prioritizes strong security and privacy through standardized credential handling, secure authentication, and support for technologies such as NFC, Bluetooth® Low Energy, and Ultra-Wideband. This approach helps ensure consistent security behavior across certified devices and simplifies compliance and certification pathways.
- Design and Platform Flexibility: By aligning mobile device manufacturers and access control providers around a shared standard, Aliro allows developers to design flexible hardware
- Reduced Development and Lifecycle Risk: Starting from a standardized credential framework enables faster validation, clearer upgrade paths, and improved confidence that deployed systems will remain interoperable as ecosystems and mobile platforms evolve.
Reference Application: Combining Micro-Location Accuracy with Ultra-Low Power
To accelerate the development of Aliro- and Matter-enabled access control systems, Nordic Semiconductor and Qorvo have collaborated on a reference application that reduces integration complexity and time-to-market for smart lock and access reader designs.
As authorized distributors for both Nordic and Qorvo, Braemac Americas is uniquely positioned to support developers adopting this reference architecture. The design provides a practical, standards-aligned starting point for advanced smart lock developments. Combining Nordic’s nRF54L Series SoC with Qorvo’s QM35825 Ultra-Wideband (UWB) SoC, the reference application delivers ultra-low-power multiprotocol connectivity with precise ranging capabilities. This architecture supports Aliro compliance while enabling secure, intuitive, and location-aware access control experiences similar to those already deployed in smartphones and automotive access systems.
By uniting Nordic’s expertise in Bluetooth® Low Energy, Thread, and Wi-Fi with Qorvo’s UWB technology, the collaboration enables developers to evaluate multiple wireless and application-layer combinations within a single design framework. Supported configurations include Aliro over NFC, Bluetooth LE, and UWB; Matter over Thread and Wi-Fi; as well as proprietary application layers over Bluetooth LE.
The QM35825 UWB SoC addresses Aliro’s precision and security requirements by enabling micro-location accuracy and reliable distance ranging. Nordic’s nRF54L Series SoC integrates an ultra-low power multiprotocol 2.4 GHz radio and Arm Cortex-M33 MCU. The SoC brings the ultra-low power consumption and security demanded by smart locks. It features secure-boot, -firmware update, and -storage, as well as offering a trusted execution environment enabled by Arm TrustZone, a cryptographic engine with side-channel leakage protection, and tamper detectors.
An early version of the Nordic and Qorvo Aliro and Matter smart lock reference application is ready to be shared with early technology adopters and will be regularly updated to offer new functionality.
nRF54L Series and QM35825 Solutions Now Available at Braemac Americas
Nordic nRF54L15
As the highest-memory option in Nordic Semiconductor’s nRF54L Series, the nRF54L15 SoC is designed for feature-rich, high-performance wireless applications. It integrates 1.5 MB of non-volatile memory and 256 KB of RAM, providing ample headroom for complex firmware while remaining cost-effective for high-volume designs.
It also features an ultra-low-power, multiprotocol 2.4 GHz radio supporting Bluetooth® 6.0, including Channel Sounding for precise location capabilities, and also supports IEEE 802.15.4-2020 protocols such as Thread, Matter, and Zigbee. A 128 MHz Arm® Cortex®-M33 processor, combined with a comprehensive peripheral set, delivers high performance in a compact footprint. Development is supported by the nRF54L15 development kit, a cost-efficient single-board platform compatible with Nordic’s nRF Connect tools and capable of emulating the nRF54L10 and nRF54L05, enabling evaluation across the full nRF54L Series using a single board.
Qorvo QM35825SR
The QM35825 is a fully integrated Ultra-Wideband (UWB) SoC compliant with IEEE 802.15.4™-2024, optimized for low power operation and high receiver sensitivity across consumer, enterprise, and industrial applications. It supports FiRa™, Aliro, and omlox ranging schemes with ±5 cm accuracy and angle-of-arrival precision of ±2°, and includes on-chip processing for ranging, AoA, radar, and data transfer.
It integrates a Cortex-M33 processor with Secure Enclave, four flexible RF ports with LNAs, PA, and RF switches, and comprehensive security features, including secure time-of-flight (STS) ranging without the need for an external secure element. Supporting channels 5 and 9, multiple data rates up to 62.4 Mbps, worldwide regulatory compliance, and advanced antenna configurations with RX diversity, the QM35825 enables precise, secure location-aware use cases such as Aliro-based door access, asset tracking, geofencing, secure identification, and radar-enabled sensing.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is Aliro™?
Aliro™ is an access credential and communication protocol being developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) to standardize how smartphones and wearables securely unlock doors and access-controlled openings. It defines a common application layer that enables interoperable, secure mobile access across certified devices and access readers.
Why is Aliro™ Needed?
As mobile devices replace physical keys and badges, access control systems have become fragmented by proprietary credentials and inconsistent security models. Aliro addresses this gap by providing a standardized, ecosystem-agnostic approach to mobile access that reduces integration complexity and improves long-term interoperability.
What Challenges Does Aliro™ Solve?
Aliro helps eliminate proprietary lock-in, inconsistent user experiences, and security variations across mobile access implementations. It enables secure, standardized credential handling while supporting multiple wireless technologies and evolving access control use cases.
What Mobile Devices Support Aliro™?
Aliro is designed to work with certified smartphones and wearables, including smartwatches, without breaking compatibility with existing access control deployments. Support will expand as mobile device manufacturers and access control vendors certify Aliro-compliant products.
How Does Aliro™ Harmonize User Experience?
By defining a common credential and authentication framework, Aliro ensures consistent access behavior across devices, platforms, and ecosystems. Certified mobile devices and readers are designed to work together predictably, regardless of operating system or hardware vendor.
What Types of Communication Protocols Does Aliro™ Support?
Aliro is designed to operate over multiple wireless technologies to support a wide range of access control scenarios. These include Near Field Communication (NFC), Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), and Ultra-Wideband (UWB).
How does Aliro™ work with Matter?
Aliro and Matter are independent but complementary standards. Matter defines device-to-device communication for smart home command-and-control use cases, while Aliro focuses specifically on secure mobile authentication at the door; products may support one or both standards depending on application requirements.
About Ray Pan
Ray Pan is an Applications Engineer at Symmetry Electronics. He has a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering from San Jose State University. With over 15 years of hands-on experience in the electronics industry, Ray serves as an excellent technical consulting resource for design engineers. Specializing in consumer and professional audio-video, FPGA, and mmWave applications–Ray develops insightful technical articles, conducts technical trainings for inside sales and customers, provides system architecture analyses, and interprets market trends covering technical products. Recognized for his talents and contributions, Ray is the proud recipient of the Lattice Semiconductor FAE of the Year 2020 Award for America.
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