Wireless EV Charging, Then & Now — WAVE CEO Interview
In this episode of our CleanTech Talk podcast interview series, Zachary Shahan, Director and CEO of CleanTechnica, Mike Masquelier, CEO of WAVE, and Alf Poor, CEO of Ideanomics, Inc., sit down to talk about wireless EV charging. You can listen to the full conversation in the embedded player below. Below that embedded SoundCloud player is a brief summary of the topics covered, but tune into the podcast to follow the full discussion.
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Alf Poor brings another new, innovative company to CleanTech Talk today — WAVE. Its mission is summed up on its website:
“WAVE’s high-power, hands-free, in-route charging system uses ruggedized pads embedded in the roadway. Vehicles are charged wirelessly during scheduled stops. Hands-free, fully automated, with no moving parts, WAVE charging enables operators to achieve driving ranges that match that of internal combustion engines, but with safety and reliability that surpass that of legacy plug-in and overhead (pantograph) charging systems.”
Zach, Alf, and Mike launch this episode by talking a bit more about how WAVE has leveraged high-power wireless charging to enable the EV industry. Historically, as Zach notes, there has been concern over whether or not wireless charging could be as powerful as plug-in alternatives. Indeed, when Mike started out with WAVE, many people doubted they could make wireless charging a competitive reality. Now, with the deployment of their 250 kilowatt charger, they have shown how powerful the technology can be. They aim to transition to as high as 500 kilowatt chargers.
By demonstrating their technology through commercial deployment, Mike says that WAVE has been able to show that their wireless charging is both efficient and effective. This, he says, has a number of different implications. When it comes to autonomous vehicles, for example, the future of autonomy means that wireless charging should be widely used so that the autonomous vehicles can charge themselves easily.
Mike firmly believes that at the fleet scale, wireless seems to be the most logical next step to maximize the use of real estate needed to hold the fleets. Alf is particularly excited for the ways in which WAVE will bring new technology, public company shareholder value, and mission alignment to Ideanomics.
Zach, Mike, and Alf also talk a bit about what the new US federal government administration means for WAVE and the EV industry in general. Alf notes that he expects an increase in funding to go to public transportation, which he thinks will see a big rise as we emerge from the pandemic. He also wants to see more of an investment in infrastructure so that it can support the innovative technology coming with the rapid adoption of EVs. The three wrap up their conversation with a talk about their vision for the next ten years in the sector.
To hear more on these topics, listen to the show!
All images courtesy of WAVE.
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