Transforming the Way We Live, Work, and Move with Wireless Power: Part 2

This post originally appeared on the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge website.

Development of any new technology, particularly one that goes to market in a technology licensing business model, cannot be performed in a bubble. It requires the feedback of users to refine future advances. There simply is no market for a technology that doesn’t provide a compelling value proposition. The development of wireless power is no exception.

As mentioned in part 1 of this blog series, the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge CleanTech Committee brought together a panel of experts to recount this journey from lab technology to commercial product and reflect upon future applications for wireless power. The panel, Transforming the Way We Live, Work & Move, was moderated by Benjamin Freas, principal research analyst at Guidehouse Insights. It included Marin Soljačić, PhD, professor of Physics at MIT and founder of WiTricity; Alex Gruzen from WiTricity; Ajay Kwatra from Dell; and Patrizia Milazzo from STMicroelectronics.

The Partner Landscape

Indeed, much of the panel was composed of WiTricity partners that are helping to deliver on the vision of making a broad range of products truly wireless. Kwatra relayed Dell’s journey through wireless power implementation. Wireless power is not a new concept to Dell; it shipped its first laptop with wireless charging capabilities in 2009. Dell’s vision is to enable true all encompassing mobility by providing a cable-less desk. Wi-Fi introduced freedom from the Ethernet cable, and now the last cord is power.

The first early foray used inductive coupling rather than WiTricity’s magnetic resonance technology. As a result, the laptop required precise placement in order to charge and provided a poor experience. Though magnetic resonance solved this problem, it was not ready for implementation in a laptop. WiTricity relied on input from Dell as it established the efficiency and wattage needed. Dell knows how its products are used and what challenges users face, so it was able to bring this expertise to WiTricity in a partnership to create a viable product.

The Road Ahead

Wireless charging of mobile phones has already reached mass-market adoption and is beginning to appear in laptops and EVs. However, the actual use of wireless power—even in devices that are equipped with it—has been persistently low. Consumer awareness remains a challenge. Current wireless power technology does not provide users with a truly wireless experience.

Nonetheless, the future of wireless power is promising. The increased reliance on electronics and the constant need to power them are driving wireless adoption. Increased awareness and use of wireless power functionality have been generated as a result of the creation of more devices that have wireless charging capabilities and the expansion in public wireless charging infrastructure.

In the future, the expansion of wearable electronic devices and Internet of Things (IoT) devices will further magnify the need for new power solutions. The establishment of public wireless charging infrastructure in locations such as coffee shops and airports is expected to reinforce adoption through the network effects they create. But user experience will be the ultimate driver of wireless power.