Topic: Shai Agassi

Shai Agassi Has an EV Vision, Can He Make America a Better Place?

The CEO of the electric vehicle services company Better Place has already made significant strides in Denmark, Israel, and Japan. He sits down with Fast Company to explain what it will take to make his vision work in the U.S.READ»

China Pours Billions Into Electric Cars, Hybrids

China, that contradictory land of coal, smog, and renewable energy, may be on the verge of leadership in another green technology sector: electric and hybrid vehicles. The Chinese government announced today a plan to invest up to $15 billion in a state-run venture that will research, develop, and generate standards for upcoming hybrids and EVs. The venture will also put millions of electric cars on the road in the coming years, according to The New York Times.READ»

Can China Turn EV Infrastructure Startup, Better Place Into a Success?

Electric vehicle infrastructure startup Better Place has a compelling business model: Better Place-branded EV charging stations allow drivers to juice up at home and at work, while gas station-like battery switch stations let ...READ»

GE's WattStation Electric Vehicle Charger Hits Streets in 2011

If the electric car is to succeed, it needs charging stations that are both easy-to-use and well designed--a clunky infrastructure will quickly turn off potential drivers. That's why GE brought in fuseproject's Yves Behar to design ...READ»

Use Reverse Innovation to Inspire Ethonomics

Last week I wrote about reverse innovation. We often witness this in other countries where the local conditions--whether due to political uncertainty, low local income levels, or unfavorable geography-- seem like a hindrance to ...READ»

Better Place, by the Numbers

Can Better Place, Shai Agassi's ambitious electric vehicle startup, actually create a viable alternative transportation infrastructure? Greentech Media attempted to answer the question with a dollars and cents breakdown of both ...READ»

Better Place Gets $350 Million Cash Injection for EV Charging Network

It doesn't matter how many electric vehicles are on the road--they're virtually useless without some sort of EV charging network infrastructure. That's where Silicon Valley electric vehicle startup Better Place comes in. Better ...READ»

Where to Open Innovation?

Right after I gave a talk at the Open Innovation Summit in Orlando on overcoming some key obstacles of open innovation, I had the chance to talk with Business Week’s Michael Arndt.  We had a great chat about future ...READ»

Branding Better Place: Building an Electric Vehicle Movement

A grassroots-level campaign helps to introduce and explain a new award-winning system for charging and using electric vehicles.READ»

• Designers Accord Case Studies

Better Place, Renault Sign Mega-Deal for 100,000 EVs by 2016

Better Place, a Silicon Valley electric vehicle infrastructure startup, has stepped up its game--first with the announcement of an in-car piece of software that checks battery charging options, and now with news of a partnership ...READ»

The World's Richest Design Awards Announced

The INDEX Awards hands out 500,000 euros to winners in five categoriesREAD»

The Myth of Battery Cars

It’s time to dump the battery-powered car in the same policy landfill as corn-based ethanol.READ»

Big Awards for the Year's Best Industrial Design

The International Design Excellence Awards were announced yesterday, and represent the 150 best designs among over 1600 entries.READ»

Toyota's Big Electric Car Blunder

Bill Reinert hates the plug-in electric car. He hates ethanol too. And what Bill Reinert hates matters to every car-buying American: he's Toyota's national sales manager and in-house energy sage, and he knows his stuff. But is he too ...READ»

The 10 Most Creative People in Ethonomics

1. Shai Agassi, CEO, Better Place A former software entrepreneur, Agassi is leading the pack on electric vehicle charging stations. His vision: battery-powered vehicles made by Renault-Nissan, a vast network of charging ...READ»

Subscribe to Fast Company Today, Your First Issue Ships Tomorrow

Hurry and take advantage of this exclusive Fast Company offer--a full year, that's 10 issues of Fast Company magazine for only $12.97. Your first issue will ship tomorrow (the next business day) and you'll receive continuous ...READ»

Nissan Bringing Electric Vehicle Charging Corridor to Arizona

Tack on Phoenix, Arizona to the growing list of U.S. cities that plan on developing an electric vehicle (EV) charging network with guidance from Renault-Nissan. The car company, which will sell its lithium-ion powered EVs to ...READ»

Interstate 5: The Alternative Energy Highway

Highways are currently dotted with gasoline fueling stations, but the highways of the future might be surrounded by alternative energy fueling stations . The first green highway may not even be that far away from reality, as the ...READ»

Electric Cars in Hawaii: The Future of Transport or Just Another Monorail?

The technology of networked electric cars is right on. The business model for it is still unproven. Will a firm called Better Place change that?READ»

• The Smart Garage: Crossroads of the New Green Economy

Tech Watch: Australian Companies Fund Electric Vehicle Grid

Better Place, a US firm that builds plug-in stations for electric cars, has just landed a $667 million USD deal to build charging networks in Australia’s three largest cities. Like smaller-scale Better Place deals already underway in Denmark and Israel, the Australian charging network will allow battery-powered and hybrid car-owners to charge their vehicles at thousands of locations, or have their vehicles batteries swapped out for faster fill-ups. READ»