Wireless Charging in the Big Apple

Blog, Member News

A Recap of our November Event in New York City

On November 18th, a surprising 70 degree fall day in New York, AirFuel Alliance hosted a highly-curated networking event for wireless power industry executives and insiders. After long months of COVID isolation, it was rewarding to see friends and colleagues in person, and connect with new contacts and potential partners.

Co-hosted by AirFuel, Yank Technologies and Newlab, and sponsored by Energous, the event was held in a vibrant innovation space in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Over 30 attendees from two dozen companies convened from regional hubs like New York, Philadelphia and Boston, and as far away as Silicon Valley.

Kicking off the night with an AirFuel overview and welcome, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, President and Chairman of AirFuel Alliance, briefed attendees on AirFuel’s groundbreaking work in wireless power standardization and adoption, addressing AirFuel Resonant and AirFuel RF standards and upcoming AirFuel Certified Engineer (ACE) training opportunities. He also shared a forward-looking industry snapshot, telling attendees what they can expect to see in wireless charging advances in the coming months.

Gordon Bell, VP of Marketing at Energous, gave an overview of new product development and global regulatory approvals, sharing how Energous is powering the IoT ecosystem with RF-based wireless charging. Attendees heard about power constraints on IoT network deployment, explored use cases for RF wireless power, and discussed the regulatory environment for wireless power transfer. 

Yank Technologies gave a brief presentation and unveiled their wireless charging vehicle console prototype for the very first time. A to-scale, fully functioning model of Yank’s Resonant-based in-vehicle technology, the demonstration by CEO, Josh Yank, was a powerful reminder of the benefits of wireless power and its ability to reimagine how humans interact with everyday devices, fixtures and equipment. The first contactless wireless charging system in a car, Yank’s proprietary solution ensures that drivers and passengers always stay charged on the road. 

Jeff Olson, a co-founder of Citibike and currently the VP of Connectivity at AirFuel member Re:Charge-e, shared a touching story from Superstorm Sandy. His prior corporate headquarters was located in the very space Newlab occupies in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and was submerged in 11 feet of storm surge. The cycle of destruction and renewal, and coming together to overcome problems, made the venue feel personal and infused with meaning, and helped unite attendees around their own initiatives. 

Representatives from Newlab shared information about how they apply transformative technology to things that matter, and offered attendees facility tours. Using shared resources to power entrepreneurs, the Newlab community is relentless in the pursuit of solving systemic challenges with frontier technologies — a mission that perfectly aligns with AirFuel’s aim to leverage cooperation to usher in a world without wires.

If interested in attending future AirFuel events, please subscribe on our website and we’ll keep you ‘in the know.’


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For media inquiries, please contact Trish Thomas at press@airfuel.org.