Charging pads embedded in the road, so bus drivers never touch a cable — removing the operational friction that stalls fleet electrification.
WAVE (Wireless Advanced Vehicle Electrification)
venture active confidence: Medium status: Draft updated 2026-07-14
Summary
WAVE (Wireless Advanced Vehicle Electrification) is a Logan, Utah company founded in 2011 as a spinout from Utah State University's Energy Dynamics Laboratory. Transit agencies have deferred electrification not because electric buses are bad but because integrating wired charging into dispatch schedules, depot layouts, and driver workflows is operationally costly.
Impact
The transit, port, and logistics sectors represent a meaningful share of commercial vehicle miles traveled and a disproportionate share of urban air quality impact. If wireless charging removes the operational barrier to fleet electrification, it accelerates decarbonization across all three sectors without requiring operators to redesign their dispatch logic.
WAVE achieved a meaningful first in 2013 with the first commercial wireless bus charging deployment (University of Utah campus), and has since scaled to higher power levels and more demanding environments. Commercial deployments now operate at power levels that were considered engineering challenges when the company launched.
The counterfactual: without seamless charging options, fleet operators continue to defer electrification or adopt partial solutions that don't eliminate diesel. WAVE reduces the decision complexity to near zero.
What They Are Building
WAVE's core product is an in-ground wireless charging pad system rated from 125kW to 500kW+, paired with a compatible vehicle receiver. The system uses magnetic resonance inductive transfer across a 6–10 inch air gap at 90%+ efficiency.
The technical challenge is transferring high power at high efficiency while meeting roadway durability standards, FCC emissions regulations, and safety requirements for human proximity. USU's Energy Dynamics Laboratory developed the foundational power electronics for this application, and WAVE has continued to push the power envelope into commercial deployment.
Secondary capabilities include fleet management software and network monitoring for multi-site wireless charging deployments.
What They Need Now
WAVE likely needs power electronics engineers, embedded systems engineers, RF and EMC specialists, civil and infrastructure project managers for roadway installation projects, and fleet electrification business development professionals. The USU-origin engineering culture and Logan, UT base suggest a technically serious team with lower cost of living than coastal counterparts.
Who Could Help
Transit agency partnerships for additional commercial deployments; port authority contacts (port electrification is a major regulatory pressure point); DOE and FTA funding contacts; fleet operators in logistics and distribution evaluating depot-charging alternatives.
Utah Context
WAVE is one of Utah's clearest examples of university-to-commercial-deployment success: a USU Energy Dynamics Laboratory research program became a spinout that has achieved real commercial scale. Logan's proximity to USU gives WAVE ongoing access to engineering talent and research collaboration. The company's revenue model (infrastructure sales plus service) suggests long-term Logan rootedness rather than a typical VC-backed growth-and-exit trajectory.
Evidence
See Also
- Electric Power Systems — complementary Utah EV-infrastructure play in aviation rather than ground transport
Open Questions
- What is the current deployment scale — how many buses, ports, and logistics sites have active WAVE installations?
- How does WAVE's efficiency compare to advancing wired alternatives (SAE MCS megawatt-class charging for trucks, overhead pantograph for buses)?
- What is the current funding and revenue profile? The USU spinout history suggests early government grants; what does the current mix look like?
- Is WAVE pursuing the passenger EV market or remaining focused on commercial fleet applications?