Charge Ahead: How On-Demand Charging is Revolutionizing Daily Lives

1 Jun 2023 | 2 min read

As a father of two kids, aged 11 and 8, our daily life is a constant juggle between work, school, swim practice for my son Matteo, and piano lessons for my daughter Francesca, whom we affectionately call “the little one.”

When my wife and I switched to a connected electric vehicle, we made the choice with two main ideas in mind. First, out of a sense of responsibility towards the future of the planet. Secondly my wife and I never had to play the “where did we park?” guessing game again. The second one may seem like a small advantage, but it’s saved us from a lot of stress and frustration. No more missed appointments or rushed meetings because one of us couldn’t find the car. With the location always at our fingertips, we can easily coordinate and plan our days without any hassle.

Unfortunately, a small but significant complication we had was the need to charge the vehicle. Charging the vehicle meant finding the time to drive to a charging station, wait for it to charge, and then get back on the road again. This often meant being late to swim or piano lessons due to city traffic. Or having to charge the vehicle during our children’s lessons and arriving late to pick them up.

Alternatively, we would have to go in the evening, when we wanted to spend time together as a family.

On-demand charging: where the need lies

Everything changed drastically a few days ago when I received a notification directly on my car maker’s app, which led me to a range of connected services around my connected car, including this on demand charging service.

With just a few clicks, I was able to get my vehicle charged during Matteo’s swim race, without having to leave the pool area. I was finally able to watch his race without any problems. The registration process was easy and intuitive. All I had to do was grant permission to locate my vehicle and book the service for a specific time and location. When I left the pool, my vehicle had been charged without me ever being physically present.

For those with busy lives, like my wife and me, who are both working parents with children old enough to have commitments but too young to move around independently in a big city, this type of service is a game-changer. I can’t wait to see what new services will be offered to me in the future through our connected car.