Changing behavior, hard. Continuously upgrading user experience, easy. If you live on the (connected) edge.
Jeff Frick
Engagement in an AI Driven, Asynchronous World | Builder | Top Voice | Video Virtuoso | Content Curator | Host, Turn the Lens podcast and Work 20XX podcast
According to the Wendover Productions analysts, the final tipping point for mass electric vehicle (EV) adoption is charging infrastructure, as outlined in "The Electric Vehicle Charging Problem**. Team Wendover does good work and to summarize, mass EV adoption hits the tipping point when a few key thresholds are crossed including:
The cost and range targets are months away, not years, and quickly evolving battery technology will shortly enable even faster charging. In Wendover's analysis, the big nasty problem is the per capita number of fast-charging stations, relative to gas stations.
"Therefore, what the industry needs is not faster chargers, but more chargers"
(Click here to jump to the relevant portion of the analysis)
This assumes parity in the numbers of fast chargers required with existing gas stations, measured in 'average distance from home'. But the vast majority of charging is done AT Home and At Work. Gas stations to charging stations are apples to alligators. Wendover does highlight legitimate areas of needed improvement on US interstate highways, where most vehicles require in-route charging. But for the 80% - 90% of the time you're not road tripping, depending on where you live, the number of charging stations at the office, parking structures, stadiums, parks, restaurants, malls, and home far outnumber corner gas stations. Averages aren't the right comparison.
Tumultuous times in the Auto Industry
The Auto industry is going through a huge transformation, and electrification is an enabler of tectonic change on three axes.
Chargepoint - Pioneering EV Charging before EV Cars were even on the roads
Electrification is at the center of this revolution, the benefits are numerous for consumers and commercial fleet operators. I was really excited to sit down with Bill Loewenthal, Senior Vice President Product, Chargepoint. I've known Bill for over 30 years since we worked together at Mitsubishi Consumer Electronics. In this far-ranging conversation, Bill and I covered everything from the revolution in the auto industry, the challenges of engrained consumer behavior, ChargePoint's unique approach to the EV fueling challenge, and electrification's role in a more autonomous future.
(For those who prefer to jump straight to the interview in its entirety, click here)
The Electric Vehicle Experience 101
But let's start at the beginning, the EV experience. There are many benefits from driving EVs, from the driving experience to the total cost of ownership (no more oil changes), to the environmental impacts, and more. A few things that will feel strange at first, but become normal in time, like the roller coaster catapult acceleration, and the pull of the regenerative braking when you lift your foot from the 'gas', and topping up when you park as you do your mobile phone at your desk.
If you're not driving electric today, you will be tomorrow .... there are so many benefits ... but the fueling model is different. The car fuels while it's parked, we don't drive to fuel.
Bill on the EV experience 1:30 Video Clip
It bears repeating, the fueling model is different. On one hand, it seems so obvious, the EV plugs in like a cell phone, topping off as you go. But we've been driving to fuel for as long as cars have been around, so it's tough to unlearn engrained behaviors.
Filling a tank is what we have in our minds. So Bill, how long does it take to fill up?
How long does it take you to fuel your electric vehicle (EV) ?
About 10 seconds
I park, I plug in, I walk inside
Bill on the 10-second fueling mindset 1:10 Video Clip
This shouldn't be that hard to learn. Full disclosure, I don't have an electric car, but I do know about range anxiety. If you get one, budget for a home fast charger if possible
Vehicles in the near future
Elon Musk has often stated that his mission is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy^ and that effort was certainly pushed along by the launch and success of the Tesla S, X 3 & Y. And while there are been some e-success from the larger automotive industry, and while their entrance seemed hesitant, ... Now, they are jumping in both feet.
The auto industry has a whole range of exciting vehicles coming in...really fun cars & trucks...and when they see an electric bus, an electric garbage truck, and an electric delivery vehicle, this is a big mind shift...
The auto industry is bringing a range of electric vehicles to market over the next few years.?0:56 Video Clip
Elon certainly moved the industry to action
Chargepoint 101 - The Origin Story
ChargePoint was founded in 2007 (the first Tesla Model S shipped in 2010) after one of the founders drove an electric car as part of a different project, and after experiencing it, he knew that widespread adoption was only a matter of time. Turns out, the founders came from the networking industry, so they built on a network first foundation, a network-connected smart ecosystem, with edge devices, cloud infrastructure, and mobile application control.
We're a 13 year-old start-up in a 7 year old industry
ChargePoint 101 - The origin story - a Network-Connected Experience - 2:02 Video Clip
Chargepoint 201 - Converting parking space into a cloud-connected, software-defined, mobile controlled, IoT edge asset for your business
The other unique twist was the business decision to build a solution around "site hosts" rather than simply selling electrons. ChargePoint's "site host" customers deploy the charging capability as they choose, usually in support of their primary function, whether that be as an employer, landlord, merchant, municipal garage operator, commercial fleet operator, etc. ChargePoint enables fine-grain access control and delivery options, as a managed service, leveraging the entire network of devices.
Enabling employers, landlords, merchants, and more to deliver the electric experience to their employees, tenants, and customers, in whatever economic configuration that supports the host's business objectives.
ChargePoint 201 - The Business Model - Site hosts use EV charging to supplement their primary business objectives - 1:18 Video Clip?
Looking for an example of programmable edge-connected IoT devices, that enable continuous upgrades to the software-defined UX? Look no future. And since it's software, with an integrated solution, ChargePoint can quickly convert new user experience objective into software, and deliver it to the field, including extending the useful capacity of existing infrastructure investments to accommodate fast-rising demand.
... folks that?... operate facilities at workplaces and other environments don't realize how fast their parking?lots are going to change and require electrification ... we've built?... maximize utilization for the stations?that they have, but also to extend ... arrive today and tomorrow.
Leveraging connected edge devices, cloud, software, and mobile to deliver a superior experience for users and hosts, like 'waitlist'-?0:54 Video Clip
With open standards and APIs, integrating with other systems opens up functions across platforms, like Apple Wallet to improve the user experience even more
We're bringing a very integrated, but open standards-based solution, so other hardware can sit on our network, but we can create unique experiences, like integrating the ChargePoint RFID card into the Apple Wallet on my phone or watch.
We can create unique experiences since we control the firmware, software, and hardware - 0:59 Video Clip
The electrification of commercial fleets is game-changing
Commercial fleets present step function opportunities in the electrification process. They're also ripe for a fueling system that can be optimized around any number of objectives, from availability, fueling costs, maintenance, etc. The recently announced Rivian - Amazon partnership will put 100,000 Amazon Prime EV delivery vehicles on the road.
... electrification for fleets is game changing ... they're delighted about the monitorability, the cost profile, low maintainance, and overall TCO ...
this is just a natural move to make
Bill Loewenthal on the benefits and ChargePoint solution for fleets 3:25 Video Clip
Product Management 2021
When Bill and I worked together in the late '90s, the concept of connected products barely reached beyond the telephone, fax machine, and whatever was connected to the 9600 baud modem (listen here). The production dance of coordinating the product, any software burned in, printing the instruction manual, et al was crucial as all had to come together in a box, that was taped closed and shipped over the horizon to parts unknown, with rare exception, never to heard from again. Use cases couldn't be validated, workflows couldn't be changed, performance couldn't be monitored, the user experience was locked. Fast forward to today, and software-defined connected devices create an ongoing, dynamic evolution of capabilities, workflows, and creative thinking.
Life has more imagination than we do - Fran?ois Truffaut?
Benefits of upgradable, connected devices reporting home 0:49 Video Clip
I love that quote. And there has never been a better time to be a product manager.
Electrification is the path to Autonomy
?Autonomy is one of the other axes of disruption. Once vehicles can drive themselves (and it'll be here overnight, which is in years, but sooner than you think), suddenly, an asset that today sits idle for 20 - 22 hours of every 24, can be put to work, sent on errands, or drive you while you sleep, work, or get that family Scrabble game in on the way, just like this family featured at the Computer History Museum.
Don't confuse the Tesla autopilot of today, with level 5 autonomy tomorrow. And years pass quickly as the data set grows and the technology develops.
... there's 7 billion people?on the planet going to 10 billion ... how do we move these people??How do we feed these people?and how do we house these people??... electrification is the path to autonomy.?And autonomy is the path to a much more?of a shared car society.?
Electrification is the path to autonomy & Autonomy is the path to a shared car future - 1:47 Video Clip
As mentioned at the top, these are exciting if turbulent times in the transportation industry. And EVs proliferate in neighborhoods and fleets, we see EV garbage trucks and EV busses, attitudes will change, and we can start to break those 100 year behaviors.
领英推荐
As they understand, & see chargers at their favorite places.. its like
'Hey, this is simple..
it just makes my day, my life better
Bill on the electric driving experience - 0:46 Video Clip
In preparing for, and after this interview, I started paying more attention, looking for Chargepoint chargers along the way. They're everywhere, in most commercial parking lots, Covid underutilized, but they're are absolutely everywhere.
I'm excited about the EV future, and will probably get one before too long. How has your EV experience been? Thanks for the conversation Bill. Exciting Future Ahead.
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References and Links
5 Different Types of Electric Vehicles for Fleets, Samsara, Nov 2020
Android Auto No Longer Feels Half-Baked Thanks to the Latest Update, Charles Dryer, August 2019
Amazon will order 100,000 electric delivery vans from EV startup Rivian, Jeff Bezos says - Andrew Hawkins, The Verge, Sept 2019 - Photo
Connected and Autonomous Vehicle, Associazione Nazionale Filera Industria Automobilstica
Powering the EV Revolution - a Conversation with ChargePoint SVP of Product Bill Loewenthal, hosted by Eduard Fidler, ARC - Advisory Podcast, Smart Cities, Podcast Channel
As ChargePoint Opens On NYSE, CEO Awaits Broad EV Push By Biden Administration , Forbes, Alan Ohnsman, March 2021
Bezos's Big Van Order Signals Amazon - Backed Rivian is 'For Real' - Chester Dawson and Keith Naughton, Hyperdrive, Bloomberg, Sept 2019 - Photo
BYD Delivers World's First All-Electric Automated side loader refuse truck to the city of Palo Alto in California, BYD, Nov 2017
ChargePoint : EV Charging For Businesses: 5 Key Questions, ChargePoint SVP, Mike DiNucci, Jan 2019 - Article, YouTube Video
ChargePoint Becomes the World’s First Publicly Traded Global EV Charging Network, Business Wire, Mar 2021?
ChargePoint in Apple Car Play Photo Credit?, ChargePoint
Charging Animation, How Electric Car Works Animation, The Zebra?
City gets the Bay Area's first All-Electric garbage truck, Allison Levitsky, Staff, Daily POst, Nov 2017 - Photo by Allison Levitsky - https://padailypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Electric-garbage-truck-678x381.jpg
CleanTechnica Bursts into Electric Car Wilderness, Zachary Shahan, CleanTecnica, Oct 2015 - Graphic - https://cleantechnica.com/files/2015/10/LEAF-Volt-home-work-charging-percentages.png
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Data - The Key to Fleet Electrification, Charlotte Argue, Geotab, June 2020, Smart Electric Power Alliance
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Electric Aircraft - Wikipedia
Every Electric Vehicle That's Expected in the next Five Years, Car and Driver, Feb 2021
Fleet Electrification can have 'outsized influence' on EV adoption, RMI analysis concludes, Robert Walton, Ultility Drive, Jan 2021
Hertz Sign Image
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Is this the start of an aviation revolution? Diane Selkirk, BBC Future Planet, Feb 2020
Janette Sadik-Khan - Website - Twitter - @JSadikKhan - Wikipedia - Amazon Author
The largest electric plane ever to fly. Chris Baraniuk, BBC Future Planet, June 2020
"Life has more imagination than we do" -?Pasquale Romano, CEO, Chargepoint, via
"Life has more imagination than we do" - Fran?ois Truffaut?, IMDB , Wikipedia , Image
Photo - Brad Fick, Car and Driver
Live Interview - Bill Loewenthal, Episode 11 - YouTube, Transcript Player
Realities of Running an EV Fleet and Mixed-Fueling Environment, Michael Hughes, Chief Revenue Officer, Chargepoint Jan 2021
Realities of Running an EV Fleet and Mixed-Fueling Environment, Michael Hughes, Chief Revenue Officer, Chargepoint, Jan 2021
Sticking to First Principles: ChargePoint Makes Its Debut on the NYSE, Pasquale Romano, Mar 2021
Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution, Janette Sadik-Khan , Penguin Books, 2016, reprint 2017
Tesla will limit Charging to 80% at busy super charger locations, Jeremy Korzeniewski, Auto Blog, May 2019 - Photo Link -
What EV Charging Means for your Fleet, ChargePoint
What's in a TCO for Electric Fleets, Electriphi, Jan 2020
When Batteries Fly, Amelia Tiemann, The Fourth Generation June 2020
Why electric cars will be more capable off-road, Toby Hagon, EV Central, August 2020
*Number of rides Uber gave worldwide from Q2 2017 - Q4 2020, Statistica, February 2021
^ Elon Musk, Tesla.com, April 2021
** The Electronic Vehicle Charging Problem, Wendover Productions, February 2021
Where to Next, by Mark Weber, November 2019, The Computer History Museum
Who Killed the Electric Car?, Electric Entertainment, 2006
Wikimedia Commons - Weather Icons - Cloud and Lightning, Cloud and Sun, Traffic Controller, Car Crash, Check Engine, Construction
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#ChargePoint @ChargePoint @BillLoewenthal @JeffFrick #TurnTheLens #ElectricVehicle #EV #EVCharging $CHPT
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Engagement in an AI Driven, Asynchronous World | Builder | Top Voice | Video Virtuoso | Content Curator | Host, Turn the Lens podcast and Work 20XX podcast
3 年Bill, remember that part when I asked you to put 110 at all the ChargePoint stations? Found a workaround, and I couldn't be more thrilled.
Senior Vice President & General Manager | B2B Public Relations
3 年Nice! Good to see you Bill L.!
Sharing actionable strategies on mastering personal growth, wellness and success | Business, Productivity + Mindset Coach | Entrepreneur | Agency Advisor
3 年Excited to continue to see a shift towards electric vehicles but with that move we need to focus on making it easier for people to charge these vehicles using clean energy (like solar). Or else in the end, how much is it really going to change for the environment. We need to think long term and tackle both issues at once.