Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Brave Thinkers from the Decade that 'Was': The All Electric Car and Shai Agassi

Shai Agassi introducing Renault's Electric Vehicle
to the media on May 11, 2008 in Tel Aviv

His name is Shai Agassi and The Atlantic Monthly has singled him out as one of 27 Brave Thinkers as the decade ends. A former software company executive, theIsraeli-American has raised nearly $500 Million to start his venture, A Better Place.

His company has forged an alliance with Renault/Nissan in which the latter has agreed to build a fully functional electrical car by 2011. Shai's plan is to develop 'filling' stations across the globe where drivers of the new vehicles such as the Chevy Volt will be able to charge their batteries or be able to swap batteries in seconds with the aid of a robot . These stations are needed because current battery charging allows vehicles to travel only about 60 miles after a 5 hour charge.

He has signed agreements with Canada, Denmark, Israel, Japan and the US to start testing the roadside stations. Perhaps one day, the familiar logos of Shell, Chevron, Exxon, Mobil, BP, Amoco and Citgo will be replaced by A Better Place

Good luck, Shai, your venture surely has the potential to wean us from our dependence on a depleting fossil fuel and help clean up our polluted atmosphere!
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