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On Thursday, September 15th, 2022, a 2016 Cleantech Open Northeast alumnus SparkCharge, hosted its annual SparkDay event. With bright sunlight shining on the crowd and nearby wind turbines spinning in the powerful late summer breeze, Massachusetts Secretary of Energy & Environmental Affairs, Bethany Card, remarked that it was, “a beautiful day for renewable energy”. The Cleantech Open Northeast team had the pleasure of attending SparkDay and joining in on a day of celebration as SparkCharge unveiled new products, services, app updates, and a brand new office in Somerville’s Assembly Square.
The day kicked off with an inspiring video featuring founder and CEO, Joshua Aviv, alongside team members Hilary Taylor (Director of Engineering) and Matt Couillard (Senior Customer Success Manager). The video introduced the Roadie V3 and the Roadie V3 Hybrid, new technologies that will revolutionize electric vehicle charging. SparkCharge also shared exciting updates to the Currently app, the company’s on-demand electric vehicle charging delivery service app, which will be expanding to San Diego, Sacramento and Boston.
Joshua Aviv shared welcoming remarks after the video wrapped up before passing the mic to President of the Northeast Clean Energy Council (NECEC) and former mayor of Somerville, Joe Curtatone. Joe discussed how Somerville is a critical hub for clean energy, with Greentown Labs, the largest climatech startup incubator in North America, catalyzing change by enabling innovative startups to plant their roots in his hometown.
SparkDay brought together government officials, investors, journalists, and experts in energy and transportation to discuss the potential for electrification across Massachusetts. Speakers included Katjana Ballantyne (Mayor of Somerville), Bethany Card (Massachusetts Secretary of Energy & Environmental Affairs), Jamey Tesler (Secretary and Chief Executive Officer at the Massachusetts Department of Transportation), Kim Driscoll (Mayor of Salem, MA), and Jeffrey Roy (House Chair of the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy).
Following the morning’s keynote speeches, SparkCharge demo’d their new products, including opportunities to ride in best-in-class electric vehicles and the Currently vans. After the demos and a delicious lunch from The Smoke Shop BBQ, attendees reconvened for a series of panel discussions. Investors spoke about investing in the next generation of clean technologies, the importance of investing in underrepresented founders, and more. Meanwhile, sessions in the new office space discussed the company’s new technology and next steps. SparkCharge’s big plans include rolling out its charging systems across the US and to make electric vehicles accessible to everyone.
SparkCharge is already playing a major role in the electrification of our transportation system, providing services both for individual drivers and fleets. The company raised $23M earlier this year through a Series A round co-led by Tale Venture Partners and Pendulum and has support from other notable investors including Mark Cuban through an investment made after Joshua Aviv and Chris Ellis (Chief Technology Officer at SparkCharge) pitched on SharkTank in 2020. Joshua Aviv began working on SparkCharge as a student at Syracuse University and early on received support from Blackstone LaunchPad, the Syracuse Center of Excellence (CoE), Techstars, Greentown Labs, and Cleantech Open.
Joshua Aviv and the SparkCharge team are an inspiring example of a game-changing cleantech company that is paving the way for a greener future. SparkCharge’s journey demonstrates the incredible potential that can be unlocked when a team works hard and partners with key players in government, academia, industry, and innovation. As we approach the 2022 Cleantech Open Northeast Regional Finals, we’re excited to see how far this year’s cohort has come and help pave the way for more eager entrepreneurs to follow in SparkCharge’s footsteps.
