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Salesforce Backs Startup That Helps Prep Power Grid for More EVs

(Bloomberg) —

A California startup that is helping utilities prepare their grids for a surge of electric vehicles raised $35 million in a funding round led by Salesforce Inc.’s venture arm.

WeaveGrid said other new investors joined existing backers, including Bill Gates-led Breakthrough Energy Ventures, in the latest financing. The firm, which developed software to help utilities better integrate EVs into their grids by coordinating charging times, will use the additional funds to hire more staff and target more customers, Chief Executive Officer Apoorv Bhargava said in an interview.

EV sales are expected to soar, driven by government mandates and financial incentives, which could end up taxing power grids. Charging a single electric car at home requires an electrical supply that today would normally power multiple households, which means utilities need to prepare to provide far more energy as EVs gain popularity.

“How we handle tens of millions of new EVs coming onto the power grid is amongst the most important technological challenges in the clean energy transition,” said Bhargava, who’s also WeaveGrid’s co-founder.

Large utilities including PG&E Corp., Exelon Corp. and Xcel Energy Inc. are using WeaveGrid’s software, the CEO said.

To contact the author of this story:
Mark Chediak in San Francisco at mchediak@bloomberg.net

© 2022 Bloomberg L.P.

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