For years, smart electric and gas meters have recorded and stored a vast amount of information on how homes and businesses use energy from the grid. Until recently, though, unlocking the full potential of that data hasn’t been easy.

Bidgely—an energy intelligence firm based in Los Altos, California—is using AI to create, for the first time ever, individualized consumer profiles that provide rich insights into energy usage at a granular level. These profiles can lead to smarter energy decisions that save costs, reduce carbon emissions, and enhance grid stability. They’ve also earned Bidgely a spot on Fast Company’s list of the world’s Most Innovative Companies of 2024. Here, CEO Abhay Gupta shares his thoughts about the role innovation and AI plays in driving the clean-energy transition forward.

1. How has innovation at Bidgely helped consumers unlock the power of their own data?
One of the key technologies we’ve brought to the energy industry is AI-enabled load disaggregation. We run analyses on data from millions of households and businesses. And with that data, we can create hyper-personalized profiles for every individual customer by detecting and identifying the “signatures” of individual appliances.

We’ve given homeowners and companies access to detailed information about how they consume energy. They can see what appliances are consuming the most energy and where there are opportunities to save on costs and reduce their carbon footprint.

2. How is Bidgely helping prepare consumers and energy companies for the switch to electric vehicles (EVs)?
Charging EVs poses two problems. The first is determining whether the electricity used to charge EVs is generated by renewable sources—or polluting fossil fuels. And second, is grid capacity. The current state of our grid does not support charging a large number of EVs simultaneously or charging stations to be built everywhere.

To start, we need the ability to shift EV-charging energy load over a 24-hour cycle. Knowing that someone owns an EV, when and where it’s being charged, and the local utility-grid constraints at any given time, helps us understand how to modify that consumer’s behavior. We can incentivize them to charge their cars during off-peak times, when electricity is cheaper—or cleaner. Using this approach in some areas we serve, we’ve shifted up to 70% of the peak load of electric vehicles to off-peak.

3. How are data-driven insights from smart meters affecting society as a whole?
When I started this company 12 years ago, we knew the data we were collecting—in combination with our AI technology—would benefit energy efficiency. But during the last five years, the game has changed—with a huge paradigm shift toward transportation electrification and decarbonization. Now, the conversation is about the survival of the planet. We’re beginning to understand the value of our data and AI techniques in enabling this shift.

Decarbonization has become a trillion-dollar market. Our solution is to expand: across North America and Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Australia and New Zealand. It’s a win-win for everybody. Energy providers can help customers adopt green technologies and will add revenue as they shift from gasoline to electricity. Consumers win as their energy bills go down. And, at the same time, utilities continue to improve their infrastructure as they pursue net-zero commitments. Together, this can be a big benefit to the environment.