Join Us on the Road Ahead
Author: Raj Jhaveri – CTO of Greenlane, Forbes Councils Member
This article originally appeared in Forbes on May 13, 2025. View the original article here.
EV adoption is surging, and vehicle manufacturers are breaking new ground every day. But there’s a huge, aging elephant in the room: the U.S. electrical grid. Most people don’t realize that over 70% of the country’s power infrastructure is more than 25 years old. That’s like trying to run modern software on Windows 95. As a result, the EV market is demanding more from the grid than it can currently deliver.
The challenge is even more urgent when we look at commercial trucks. They make up just 5% of vehicles on the road, but they’re responsible for about one-quarter of the transportation sector’s total greenhouse gas emissions. Electrifying this segment would be a game-changer in the fight against climate change. But without the right infrastructure in place, we’re stuck spinning our wheels.
One of the biggest roadblocks charging point operators (CPOs) face is knowing how much power will actually be available at a given location and when. Utility companies often don’t have accurate models for forecasting future EV demand. That’s because they’re still working with outdated data and planning frameworks. Not knowing what the grid can handle or how soon it can be upgraded can slow the EV transition process significantly, delaying permitting and site energization. We can’t scale what we can’t plan.
Breaking Down Silos By Sharing Data
Utility companies, CPOs, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of both EV chargers and vehicles, and fleet operators all sit on incredibly valuable data. But we’re not sharing it—at least not at the scale that’s needed.
For example, CPOs collect real-time utilization data. They know which chargers are being used, how often, for how long and by what types of vehicles. That data can help utilities make better decisions about where to strengthen the grid. On the other hand, vehicle OEMs and companies like Uber Freight have troves of telemetry data such as vehicle routes, frequency of travel and driver behavior—information that can help determine the most strategic locations for charging stations.
When you connect these silos and put all that data together, you get a much clearer picture of actual and future energy demand. Then we can start to be proactive instead of reactive by building the right infrastructure in the right places at the right time.
Smarter Energy Management
Of course, better collaboration doesn’t solve the problem entirely. The other half of the equation is reducing our reliance on the traditional grid.
One solution is microgrids: small, decentralized power systems, such as a 2-megawatt solar canopy paired with a battery storage system and managed by smart controllers. These can handle a surprising amount of charging demand without ever touching the main grid. With the right AI algorithms, they can dynamically balance load, forecast energy demand and decide in real time whether energy should come from the battery, the solar array or the grid.
Add in reservation systems—more common in private fleets than in public charging—and we can predict energy usage down to the hour and vehicle type. Vehicle telematics let us optimize charging on a per-driver basis, based on factors like tire pressure, driving patterns and route schedules. From that, machine learning models can determine exactly how much to charge and when, minimizing wait times and strain on the grid.
Building A Resilient Energy Future
It’s also time to broaden our view of renewable energy. Geothermal energy and even nuclear microreactors could play crucial roles in creating a more diversified energy mix. Again, the key is data—the more accurate and granular, the better. And the more we share that data across the ecosystem, the more effective, efficient and equitable our infrastructure becomes.
Let’s not forget the real reason we’re doing this in the first place. The end goal is more than just business growth—it’s fighting climate change and creating a cleaner future. That requires a level of collaboration the industry hasn’t fully embraced yet. But we need to. The EV future is already in motion. Now it’s up to us to make sure the infrastructure is ready.