You are right ánd wrong: the “official” Hue app, created by Athom, has always required the Hue hub. There’s also the “Philips Hue, without the bridge” app, which doesn’t require the bridge. However, that’s a community-developed app, and therefore not available for Homey Bridge (only Homey Pro).
Athom likes to say that the Homey Bridge is “the last smart home hub you’ll ever need”, but I guess they meant to add “…aside from the Philips Hue hub”.
