A New York City startup called Every Electric is turning apartment-dwelling renters into a virtual power plant. The company delivers free household batteries that plug into standard wall outlets; residents then plug their window air conditioners into the batteries. During peak demand periods, the batteries discharge stored power instead of pulling from the grid, letting households stay cool while earning about $150 per air conditioner each year through Con Edison's demand response program.
Every Electric initially focused on sodium-ion battery chemistry before pivoting to residential energy storage. Co-founder and CEO Andrew Wang told Ars Technica that the goal is to make batteries as easy and accessible as possible, then share the value they provide to the grid with households. Customers can also buy the batteries outright for $650, and the deposit for the loaner program has been reduced from $50 to $30.
The program is not without issues. During extreme heat, Con Edison reduced voltage for hundreds of thousands of customers, which on two occasions tripped the circuit breaker in the author's apartment. Every Electric responded by updating battery firmware to better match each household's wiring, a challenge that varies from modern buildings to pre-war units with old electrical systems. Despite these kinks, the company is scaling up from dozens to thousands of batteries, according to the report.