Does anyone know if it’s possible without HomeBridge? I’ve seen several write ups using a rPi but never for HomePod or an iPad as the hub.
I think you're conflating two ideas: you need a HomeBridge server (any always-on computer NodeJS can run on will do, but a Linux system is easy and an Raspberry Pi is cheap). That is a mandatory part to make "unofficial" devices like Hubitat talk to HomeKit on iOS/macOS.
The second thing, which is optional, is a "Home Hub." This has to be an Apple TV or an iPad (one that is always at home). What this allows you to do is use HomeKit remotely. It's not related to HomeBridge per se; this just how HomeKit works, and again it's totally optional. You can use HomeKit devices at home (more generally: from a mobile device or Mac on the same LAN, or I assume VPNed into it, though I've never tried it that way) without it.
An iPad cannot run HomeBridge, and I don't think anyone has reverse-engineered enough to get a Pi or any HomeBridge "server" to also act as a HomeKit hub, though that actually seems like a neat idea (though not what you're asking).
Ok this makes way more sense now. Thank you
Is another way to put this....
"HomeBridge" is how you get Siri and the Apple Home app to control your Hubitat devices."
Your explanation was a little confusing to me so I wanted to make sure I understood you correctly.
Also, if you want to control your hubitat devices remotely with siri do you also need a HomeKit hub? Or is HomeBridge enough to get that as well?
You are correct on both points. I think of Siri as just another interface (voice control) for HomeKit, the other being the Home app on iOS or macOS. Both have the same requirements (HomeBridge if you want to use things like Hubitat--or for normal people, I guess just HomeKit-compatible devices in the first place; and a "Home Hub" if you want remote access--for any part of HomeKit, not just HomeBridge).
PS - Being able to use Siri to occasionally control Hubitat devices at home or away is pretty much the only reason I mess with HomeBridge at all. The Home app is...mediocre at best, and even though I'm using mostly "unofficial" devices, it's hard for me to imagine that it would be a better experience either way. I guess it's one way to get remote control or monitoring if you are opposed to Hubitat Dashboard or SharpTools.
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I'm sorry to harp on this but my second "point" was a question...do you need a Home Hub to control things remotely if you have HomeBridge?
Yes, a home hub like an iPad or Apple TV is needed to control devices remotely via HomeKit.
Homebridge without a home hub allows you to control devices that are not compatible with HomeKit, but locally only.
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Thank you both. As a non-Apple person it has always confused the hell out of me. I have one Apple device, an iPad for work that I don't dare put anything on since it has AirWatch on it so they can scan the whole thing basically.
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Don't forget Automations. Without a working 'Home Hub', the Automation button at the bottom of the Home App doesn't offer much. Apple's presence detection requires Automation, therefore you must have a HomeHub.
You can get an AppleTV (4th gen) on ebay for $79 (1 left) and you don't even need to hook it to a TV. Just pretend it's a black Hue hub 
and put it in the closet too. You can use a 3rd Gen and those are available on ebay for $30 
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If the black part really bothered you, I bet you could spray it white no problem at all. 
The fact that I did forget them probably tells you how useful I find them. 
Before the Hubitat mobile app launched, I did use it for presence, with "good enough" reliability after some initial hiccups. Now it's mostly because it's nice to use Siri for occasional "manual" voice control if I don't feel like busting out a dashboard or pressing a button.
(If all of your devices are on Hubitat, as most of mine are, it usually makes more sense to just automate there instead. My device ratio probably affects how I feel here.)
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Ok I got homebridge running via windows. Anyone care to share their config.json file? I can see Homebridge is working before I drop my config file in. I'm using the example from another post: "New Homebridge Plug-in via MakerAPI and Eventsocket" and it does not seem to work. I get an error when typing homebridge into cmd prompt
Thanks!
Homebridge consists of 2 pieces: Homebridge and at least ONE Plug-In. Almost all Homebridge docs assume that you have the Homebridge portion ofthe config.json built per those installation instructions 
The 'base' Homebridge config.json is
{
"bridge": {
"name": "Homebridge",
"username": "CC:DD:3D:F3:EE:3C",
"port": 51826,
"pin": "031-00-100"
},
"description": "My HomeBridge: Hubitat and TCC",
"platforms":
}
Inside platforms <-- plural, with an S... are the individual Plugin lines. Hubitat-MakerAPI would be inserted between the of the base. Normally you would alter Username and Pin to be unique and secret.
{
"platform": "Hubitat-MakerAPI",
"name": "Hubitat",
"app_url": "http://192.168.10.169/apps/api/YOUR_APPS_ID/ 20",
"access_token": "THIS-SHOULD-BE-YOUR-TOKEN",
"polling_seconds": 300,
"temperature_unit": "F",
"mode_switches": true,
"hsm": true,
"excluded_capabilities": { "HUBITAT-DEVICE-ID-1": [ "Switch", "TemperatureMeasurement" ] }, "excluded_attributes": { "HUBITAT-DEVICE-ID-1": [ "power", "humidity" ] }
}
I use homebridge-hubconnect, which is a slightly different plugin... therefore my specific config.json would lead you astray.
A 3rd gen works too? I thought the home app said 4th gen and above.
"Apple has updated its documentation to reflect the fact that the third-gen Apple TV can do HomeKit remote access, but not automation."
For me, I want Automations so I can use my iPhone as Presence.... but perhaps with Hubitat's Mobile App it's not needed.
I have a pair of 3rd gens that I should probably power up and give it a try.
Does this expose Homekit devices to Hubitat for control and status or just allow Siri control of devices known to Hubitat?
The latter: HomeBridge, in general, is a way to get "unofficial" devices to work with Apple's HomeKit, which otherwise requires certified devices of which there are relatively few (compared to what you could make work with, say, Hubitat). HomeKit allows control and (and querying) of devices via Siri, and with a "HomeKit hub" (AppleTV or iPad on the same LAN), you can also create automations in the Home app on iOS/iPad OS/macOS.
What it does not do is expose HomeKit devices to Hubitat. The role of HomeBrdige--and, as a result Hubitat's community integration here--is the opposite direction. (But couple that with HomeKit automations, and there is at least some extent you can go in the other direction if you're creative enough using virtual devices as proxies.)
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