The electric car has encountered a number of hurdles in its ongoing path to the mainstream, and they haven’t all been technical. More human challenges, like range anxiety, have served as hindrances in the wide-scale consumer adoption of electric vehicles (EVs.) As big carmakers move more […] Read more »
The smart grid industry’s focus is now shifting to the true purpose of the smart grid movement: applications that will improve the efficiency, reliability and versatility of the electric grid. This report analyzes six key smart grid application trends that will help shape the industry landscape in the years to come: distribution automation, data analytics, demand response, carbon management, home energy management and electric vehicles. The applications that prevail in this new arena will define the smart grid experience for industrial, commercial and residential customers. Along the way, new business opportunities that arise from these applications will become available for the providers of software, systems, devices and services, and enhance customer awareness and control of energy consumption. Companies mentioned in this report include Echelon, Google, EnerNOC, ZigBee and Microsoft. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Is the greentech industry headed for a breakout year or is it retrenching for hard times to come? The first three months of 2011 provided evidence that could support both assertions, with a big rise in venture capital investment and a big drop-off in global energy financing. Solar power remained the largest green technology sector in terms of venture capital investment, while in the world of electric vehicles, GM’s Chevy Volt hybrid and Nissan’s all-electric Leaf — the first two mainstream plug-in vehicles — hit the showroom floors in significant numbers. Meanwhile the smart grid sector’s relative dearth of VC investment was more than made up for by the massive round of acquisitions. Companies mentioned in this report include NRG Energy, Microsoft, Silver Spring Networks, Tesla and BrightSource Energy. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Battery startup Xtreme Power just landed its biggest grid energy storage deal yet, a 36-megawatt battery for Duke Energy. Could its secretive, solid-state energy storage technology challenge sodium sulfur and lithium ion for reigning grid champion? Read more »
One of the most basic requirements for adoption of electric vehicles is having a place to plug in. According to Ford, which released its list of top 25 cities for EVs, paving the way for an influx of EVs means going far beyond charge point installations. Read more »
AT&T is starting to look like the network of choice for connecting electric car’s wireless IT systems. This week at the wireless event CTIA, Ford said it has chosen AT&T’s wireless network for connectivity for its upcoming Ford Focus Electric. Read more »
Ford is turning to a new tech to reduce the weight of its cars and improve fuel efficiency: tiny bubbles. Ford says it is trialling a technology out of the labs of MIT, now owned by Trexel, called MuCell, which injects micro bubbles into plastic components. Read more »
The latest wave of electric cars rolling into the market will be cars connected to the power grid and increasingly, to cellular networks. Along with smart meters and the smart grid, electric vehicles and EV charging stations will be areas to watch. Read more »
A pilot project at a Ford factory combines solar PV, a block of energy storage, a dynamic management system and a handful of electric car batteries — think about it as the triple play for clean power. Courtesy of DTE Energy and energy storage startup Xteme Power. Read more »
Ford’s Ed Pleet gives us a video demo of Ford’s new mobile app, MyFord Mobile, that will help drivers remotely manage energy consumption in the upcoming Ford Focus Electric vehicle. The software allows users to remotely monitor the car’s battery and plan trips around recharging stations. Read more »
It’s that time again, when automakers haul their wares out to Detroit for the North American International Auto Show. The event, which kicks off on Monday, will include an array of concepts for more efficient and less polluting cars, including hybrids, plug-in hybrids and all-electric vehicles. Read more »
Ford today announced a new mobile app to help drivers remotely manage energy consumption in the automaker’s upcoming Ford Focus Electric vehicle. The software can schedule and monitor the recharge process, and plan intelligent driving routes with recharging stations along the way. Read more »
Lithium-ion battery startup ActaCell, which has already raised funds from such high profile groups as Google.org, DFJ Mercury and Applied Ventures (Applied Materials venture arm), is out touting over $3 million in newly acquired financing this morning. Read more »
Nearly a year after introducing it, Ford launched AppLink, software that links a smartphone with an automobile. Drivers can control smartphone apps through the SYNC voice command system, which could mean a value-add proposition to developers that use Ford’s APIs in their mobile applications. Read more »
While Uncle Sam has tapped a select few companies as winners for its green car loan program, it has left a much longer list of loan applicants disappointed or stuck in limbo. Here’s the state of the ATVM awards at the end of 2010: Read more »
Ford and partner Azure Dynamics announced this morning that they have started production and deliveries of the Transit Connect Electric work van — the first of five electric vehicles from Ford — to customers in North America and the U.K. Read more »
As consumers purchase a greater number of web-connected devices such as tablets, portable game devices and eBook readers, they don’t want to leave these items behind. Automakers are beginning to see the potential of integrated Wi-Fi in cars, which will boost revenue opportunities down the road. Read more »
Volvo’s all-electric vehicle, the C30, has been hitting the streets of California this week, under going test drives during the LA Auto Show, and being tested in fleets in California starting next week. Read more »
There’s no question that the broadband connected car will be a massive market opportunity. But there’s two diverging scenarios, one dominated by embedded computing in the vehicle, the other is led by cell phones. At Mobilize, Ford says it will embrace the cell phone. Read more »
For electric vehicles to become truly mainstream, utilities and auto makers need to partner on a variety of details. Here’s 5 reasons why car companies and utilities should be besties. Read more »
Anticipating the roll-out of their new electrified line of cars and light-duty vans, Ford is partnering with utility Portland General Electric to make sure adequate charging infrastructure and electrical grid capacity are available in their service area. Read more »
General Motors’ long-awaited S-1 filing spotlights work on the Chevy Volt, OnStar communication system and Google partnership as evidence of GM’s commitment to next-generation technologies. Here’s 12 things to know from the S-1 related to greener vehicles and Car 2.0:. Read more »
Hybrid technology is really getting its day in court. A former General Motors worker and her husband have been accused of stealing (and trying to sell to a Chinese competitor) $40 million in trade secrets related to hybrid vehicles. Read more »
In the second quarter of 2010, greentech startups scored record venture capital and increased spending despite a weak economy. Solar power retained its lead in greentech venture financing, while global investment for clean energy asset financing fell. China, meanwhile, underscored its rising might in the greentech industry, raising billions of dollars in green energy financing. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Paice LLC founder Alex Severinsky has for years waged legal battles against Toyota and Ford claiming they’ve used his patented hybrid technology in their models. In the last few days settlements have emerged in both cases. Read more »
China has historically been a tough market to crack for foreign companies, and cleantech companies, too, face a number of hurdles in that space. Here’s what you need to know to start doing green business in China, and how to make the right ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
I’ve been working on several big projects in recent months, and after the whirlwind started settling down, I realized how important it was to take time off. How can we ensure that we get enough time away from our work before burning ourselves out? Read more »
Ford and General Motors plan to let drivers send Google Maps directions to their in-vehicle communication systems, Sync and OnStar. The automakers announced the services separately today, as Internet rivalries spill over into the landscape of connected and electric cars. Read more »
General Motors moved this week to link its upcoming Chevrolet Volt and in-vehicle communications system, OnStar, with Google navigation tools and smartphones based on the search giant’s Android platform. This marks a key intersection in the trajectories of automakers and Internet giants and could pave the way to much more comprehensive partnerships across previously disconnected industries and systems. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Roku is boosting the amount of sports content it carries through a multiyear deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) that adds live pay-per-view events and archived matches to its broadband set-top box. It’s the third major sports deal for the set-top box maker. Read more »
Ford’s exec in charge of connected services, Edward Pleet, told us at our Green:Net event that in terms of its Sync platform, “the sky is the limit.” Expect thousands of applications, providing various services to Ford customers someday, similar to a platform like Apple has. Read more »
Automakers from Detroit to China to Silicon Valley have plug-in vehicles slated for commercial launch between 2010 and 2012. A lively ecosystem of technology developers, equipment makers and would-be service providers for these vehicles has started to emerge in preparation for an influx of electric cars. ... Read more at GigaOM Pro »
During the next few years, plug-in hybrid and all electric vehicles will be mass-produced for the first time. The promise of reducing emissions, fuel consumption, and the cost of driving will prompt fleet operators and consumers to purchase more than 800,000 of these vehicles between 2010 and 2015, according to Pike Research’s forecasts. Keeping EVs charged and ready to go will require an infrastructure of equipment for vehicle charging and new IT management system for monitoring, analyzing, and controlling vehicle charging. This report looks at the opportunities for IT companies to solve a variety of challenges for utilities, automakers, consumers and others in the EV ecosystem. Includes market segment forecasts forcustomer information management, smart charging management and data analytics. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Ford is creating a new mobile application developer network to partner with developers and entice them to use functionality to support Sync AppLink. By adding a vehicle interface to smartphone apps, mobile software programmers could benefit from greater demand for their software. Read more »
In its latest move to woo third-party developers and the consumers who buy their apps, Ford today says it has launched a “developer network” for its Sync communication platform, and plans to let drivers control smartphone apps using the Sync interface next year. Read more »
