[MayeulC]

Incidentally, I was wondering how a "smart" home could centralize power distribution to use less energy.

Yes, the hub would be always on, but you get to kill every sleeping device, such as the TV, "smart" lightbulbs by making the hub control them directly, phone chargers and various transformers plugged in the outlet, idling computers, etc.

Just ask the hub to turn on your computer, for instance.