Turning Your Into a Power Grid on Wheels

There is no conceivable end to what all human beings can go out and do, but at the same time, there is little we do better than growing on a consistent basis. This commitment to growth, regardless of the circumstances, has empowered the world to clock some huge milestones, with technology emerging as quite a major member of the group. The reason why we hold technology in such a high esteem is, by and large, predicated upon its skill-set, which guided us towards a reality that nobody could have ever imagined otherwise. Nevertheless, if we look beyond the surface for one hot second, it will become abundantly clear how the whole runner was also very much inspired from the way we applied those skills across a real world environment. The latter component, in fact, did a lot to give the creation a spectrum-wide presence, and as a result, initiate a full-blown tech revolution. Of course, this revolution eventually went on to scale up the human experience through some outright unique avenues, but even after achieving a feat so notable, technology will somehow continue to bring forth the right goods. The same has turned more and more evident in recent times, and assuming one new discovery ends up with the desired impact, it will only put that trend on a higher pedestal moving forward.

General Motors has officially confirmed that all of its electric vehicles will have bidirectional vehicle-to-home (V2H) charging capabilities by model year 2026. Before we get the specifics of this development, we must understand how bidirectional charging actually works. You see, while unidirectional charging is meant to fetch electricity flows from the electric grid and send it across to the electric vehicle, the bidirectional iteration is more about ensuring that the said electricity can flow both ways. Talk about what kind of prospects this technology can help us stir up, it can blow wide open the use cases of our high-capacity lithium-ion batteries, as suddenly their purpose is not just restricted to help us run those environment-friendly electric vehicles. Instead, they can also be treated like those backup storage cells that hold the capability to charge other electric devices, an entire home, or just send power to the electrical grid for possible energy savings. But how will the technology work from a compatibility standpoint? Well, GM has dedicated the necessary thought to it, and that’s why the company will also provide car owners with an Ultium Home V2H Bundle, which will include GM’s PowerShift Charger and a V2H enablement kit. Powered by GM’s Energy Cloud software platform, these products will basically allow users to seamlessly manage the flow of energy between their cars and their home.

“GM Energy’s growing ecosystem of energy management solutions will help accelerate GM’s vision of an all-electric future by further expanding access to even more benefits that EVs can offer,” said Wade Sheffer, vice president of GM Energy. “By integrating V2H across our entire Ultium-based portfolio, we are making this groundbreaking technology available to more consumers, with benefits that extend well beyond the vehicle itself, and at broader scale than ever before.”

According to certain reports, the first General Motors’ vehicles to get the technology are going to be the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV RST, the 2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1, the 2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV, the 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV, the 2024 Cadillac Lyriq, and the upcoming Cadillac Escalade IQ.

As significant as the development sounds, GM isn’t the first automotive company to launch vehicles with bidirectional capabilities. Ford’s F-150 Lightning, Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6, the upcoming Volvo EX90, and Nissan Leaf have all outpaced the giant in that regard. However, the move still signals the growth of major trend for the future. If anything, it also comes at a very pivotal time, considering The Energy Information Administration had recently warned that two-thirds of North America could face electricity shortages due to temperature rises over the summer.

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