Will the push for electrification revive the smart home?

On The Carbon Copy podcast this week:

Visions for the energy-smart home of the future haven’t panned out as expected. 

In the mid-2000s, the internet-enabled consumer dashboard was going to be the thing that revolutionized energy in the home. Even Google and Microsoft got in on the action — only to later shut down their energy dashboards when no one was using them.

Then came the smart thermostat, pioneered by Nest. Many hoped the rise of smart thermostats marked the start of a wave of technology adoption that would enable millions of energy-aware homes. They have been helpful for demand-response programs, but the gadget-centric model hasn’t yet unlocked a smart-home revolution.

But today, there’s a new driving force that is creating more urgency for the grid-interactive home: electrification. 

As we electrify the economy and build more variable and intermittent renewables, we need buildings to help balance the grid. And after decades of futuristic visions that never materialized, are we finally at a moment when the smart, grid-interactive home is emerging in a meaningful form?

This week, we dig into that question with Canary Media senior reporter Julian Spector. Read Julian’s piece on grid-interactive homes, part of Canary Media’s weeklong Home of the Future special series.

Transcript available here.

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