I have an HA Yellow and multiple AppleTVs with integrated Thread. I have recently added several Eve Thread devices to the Apple Thread network and am able to control them through Apple’s Home.app.
I would like to have my Yellow use the Apple Thread network as the preferred one as per the documentation (Thread - Home Assistant). However, under Settings —> Thread in HA, I do not see any “other networks” with the AppleTVs as border routers listed. The only “other” network I see is one that must have been auto-created by my Nanoleaf devices.
Is there any way to get the Yellow to “see” the Apple Thread network? I have tried switch the firmware from Thread to Zigbee and back again (rebooting at each step), but still no luck.
This is a common issue with Apple Thread border routers — they don't broadcast their network credentials the way OpenThread expects, so HA Yellow can't "see" them automatically.
Why you can't see Apple's network
Apple Thread border routers (Apple TV, HomePod) use a different credential provisioning path than OpenThread Border Routers. The HA Yellow runs OpenThread, which expects border routers to advertise themselves via mDNS with the _meshcop._udp service. Apple's implementation doesn't do that in the same way — so HA never discovers it.
Option 1: Get the network key via the Eve app (easiest)
If you have an Eve Energy or any Eve Thread device already on the Apple network:
Open the Eve app on iOS
Go to Settings → Thread Network
You'll see the network credentials — copy them
In HA, go to Settings → Integrations → Thread → Add Network
Paste the credentials manually
Option 2: Use the Nanoleaf network instead
You mentioned your Nanoleaf created its own Thread network. That network IS visible to HA. You could:
Set the Nanoleaf Thread network as preferred in HA
Factory reset the Eve devices and re-pair them through HA's Matter/Thread commissioning
This would move them from Apple's Thread network to the Nanoleaf one
Downside: you'd lose control from Apple Home.app for those devices.
Option 3: Use Matter multi-admin (best of both worlds)
Commission the Eve devices through HA using Matter (not Apple Home first)
Then use Matter multi-admin to share them back to Apple Home
This way HA is the "owner" of the Thread network and Apple is a secondary controller
Quick check: in Settings → System → Hardware, is your Yellow's radio showing as "OpenThread Border Router" and not just "Thread"? If it shows only "Thread" without "Border Router", the radio firmware isn't fully provisioned — that would explain the missing discovery too.