Power Hero is a California-based EV charging company developing solutions for a smarter grid for everyone

As Esmond Goei currently sits as CEO with one of the most innovative portfolios of EV charging solutions, he can’t help but reflect how he arrived here. When visiting his son in 2014, the idea for Power Hero was seeded. While having coffee, they were searching for an outlet to charge their phones, and were having trouble. They grumbled about how stupid it was that someone could use an outlet for hours on end for the cost of a coffee. When Goei started to think about acquiring an EV, that conversation came back to haunt him. “What if the available charging outlets were all taken, and I needed to charge?”. His research confirmed that to be the case as EV chargers were difficult to locate, rarely showed real-time availability and could not be reserved.

As Goei lived in an apartment without access to an EV charger or outlet, he realized the enormity of the charging problem for apartment residents. As he travelled for business, he often used Airbnb and he wondered whether EV charging was listed as an amenity, it wasn’t. One thought led to another and the idea of an “Airbnb” network for EV charging resulted in a patent for a reservable charging network called PowerNet^TM issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). That patent was soon followed by an adapter device called the Cameo^TM which allows any un-networked charger to be immediately connected to the cloud. Power Hero’s Cameo enables businesses and homeowners with EV chargers to offer their charger to the public – much like an Airbnb. There are millions of chargers like these that can instantly be made available to the public with no need for infrastructure investments.

Apartment residents make up some 30% of the American population many of whom are younger and the most passionate about the EV market. Further, 80% of EV charging occurs at home and apartment residents do not have that luxury of retrofitting their parking areas for personal chargers. Or their building is so old that it was not architected and/or built with high current electrical wiring or have sufficient power fed to their building from the public grid. Without the benefit of “charging at home” apartment residents are hesitant to make the leap to EV ownership, and that holds back a large part of the most enthusiastic segment of the market.

Power Hero has the technology to provide apartment residents with “home charging” with its new PowerPac^TM product. PowerPac easily connects to any existing 120V circuit and banks power throughout the day, giving apartment residents the luxury of personal EV charging and up to 100 miles of daily charge. With this solution, apartment dwellers can easily make the leap to EV ownership and get meaningful overnight charging while they sleep. For more, visit their website: https://www.powerhero.com/

Power Hero believes that all global citizens want to do their part in reversing climate change. The company wants to impact the world’s migration to renewables by accelerating the adoption of EVs. By enabling EV users to Charge Everywhere, Power Hero hopes to eliminate the range anxiety that first time EV owners face. Without overnight charging and a reliable real-time network, they know that eventually they could face low battery power and the risk of being stranded. Power Hero’s innovative range of product solutions create a world where anyone can charge overnight and all chargers can be easily located and reserved.

Goei usually starts a company by testing his concept with seasoned investors who have previously invested in him, or with him in other ventures and their feedback helps him crystallize the concept into a business plan. The plan follows an evolutionary path to identify the right product-market fit. Rarely does a company change the market but sometimes small ideas can revolutionize an industry. Goei in particular thinks the gas-station model and supercharging stations is a flawed idea and severely antiquated. It’s much easier to give people access to the existing power that is everywhere so they can always top off. EVs should be operated more like an iPhone and not a Model-T Ford. Hence the motto – Charge Everywhere.

Power Hero believes enabling apartment residents to have the same “luxury” as detached homeowners with a private EV charger will have one of the biggest impact on EV adoption.

The company encourages dialogue within but that only happens when the environment fits the policy and that starts with the truth. Management lead the charge by keeping everyone informed as to their financial condition, their strategies, both short and long term, their competition and how they stack against them, the state of the industry and how that impacts Power Hero.

Meet the Founder

Esmond Goei is a serial entrepreneur with many successful startups and turnarounds spanning over 30 years. He started Power Hero in 2017 after selling a modular solar-powered battery systems company, which he founded in 2009 and sold in 2016. Esmond has participated in several other emerging companies with successful gains upon their IPO or sale, such as a multi-media processing company (IPO), a wireless hospital bedside information systems company (IPO and subsequent sale), and even an organic baby foods company that was sold.

“We are passionate about clean energy and making it possible for everyone to own an electric vehicle.”