Silicon Valley Bets Big on Home Electrification. Will It Pay in the Kitchen?
This week, news of a new home electrification initiative hit the wires.
Founded by former Google Ventures partner Rick Klau, Onsemble is developing technology to convert electric water heaters into what the energy industry calls a virtual power plant (VPP). VPPs act as aggregators and connect independent distributed energy resources (DERs), such as rooftop solar vehicles and electric vehicles, through the electric grid. While Onsemble won’t allow water heaters to generate energy like a solar panel on your roof, the company believes that connecting and connecting your water heater to the grid will translate into significant savings.
It’s an interesting concept, indicative of the growing interest within Silicon Valley and the wider tech community around home electrification. This interest has been growing for years, especially in markets like California, where state and local governments have pushed regulations around residential and commercial buildings that mandate electrification. But it goes beyond that, and much of the recent frenzy has been fueled by a flood of new money entering the market at discounts that are part of the Deflation Act.
Other startups that have jumped on the wave of home electrification in the past few years include Zero Homes, which partners with local municipalities to prove the road to decarbonizing home energy users by guiding them to electrify their homes. Another is QuitCarbon, which provides customers in the Bay Area with an electrical installation road map that outlines the types of electrical equipment for specific home electrical infrastructure and helps consumers navigate the home rebate process. Similarly, Elephant Energy has partnered with contractors to help install a range of indicators, vehicle EV charging stations, and heat pumps.
Then there’s Impulse Labs, a startup that creates induction cooktops that include a battery to help consumers transition to electric kitchens. Adding a battery will power those homes that don’t have induction cookers – electric stoves can draw 40 amps at 240 volts after all – enabling the homeowner to use one without needing to rewire their home or install a new electrical panel. Impulse’s energy storage cooking facilities will act as an alternative energy storage facility – or DER – in the electric grid network that can contribute to the VPP cluster.
Of all the ideas, Impulse strikes me as the most innovative; offers a solution that not only organizes installation or crossing in accordance with local building codes, but is a completely new way that helps both homeowners and service providers by installing a new type of system (in a package of common appliances) in the network.
There is no doubt that we will need some of these methods as US homeowners, in particular, struggle to end their addiction to gas heating and cooking. The installed base of gas stoves in the US is large, and there is a significant financial and emotional attachment to cooking with fire. By adopting truly innovative alternatives that offer real benefits (financial and lifestyle), the kitchen electrification organization may have a fighting chance.
