[kylegordon]

You are conflating automation with remote control.

Replacing a lightswitch with an app that requires human interaction is indeed ridiculous.

Replacing a lightswitch with a motion sensor has been a staple feature of commercial buildings for decades.

Similar for heating control, occupancy detection, adaptive lighting, energy management, etc. Replacing a physical entity without adding any value to it is pointless, hence the 'automation' part of the phrase