Hugh Sheehy, co-founder and CEO of Go Eve. Image: Nick Bradshaw/Fotonic
Developed by UCD researchers, Go Eve is looking to make the rapid charging of EVs in parking spots possible at scale.
Go Eve, a company that is developing a new EV charging system, has been named University College Dublin (UCD) Start-up of the Year 2021.
Currently in the process of spinning out of UCD and Imperial College London, Go Eve has created a technology called DockChain that enables rapid charging of EVs in public parking spaces, with the aim of improving on existing, slower technology.
Part of the annual UCD VentureLaunch accelerator, which is run by the NovaUCD hub for new ventures, the award includes a €32,000 prize that Go Eve will use to further develop its patent-pending technology.
This technology was originally developed by a team of researchers led by Prof Robert Shorten at UCD’s School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. Shorten has since moved to Imperial College London, where the tech is being further developed by him and his team.
Most existing EV charging systems are based on AC power, while those running on DC are expensive and have limited reach. DockChain by Go Eve aims to significantly reduce the cost of using high-speed DC systems at scale, simplifying the EV charging process.
“Our vision is to make every parking space capable of charging an EV using the DockChain technology. This technology makes rapid DC charging possible for all parking spaces at little more than the cost of today’s slow AC charging infrastructure,” said Hugh Sheehy, co-founder and CEO of Go Eve.
Along with Sheehy and Shorten, founders of Go Eve include John Goodbody, Dr Pietro Ferraro and Andrew Cullen.
Sheehy said that Go Eve’s technology could be especially beneficial for spaces where a large number of EVs are parked, such as the premises of car rental fleet operators, hotel and office car parks, and municipal parking.
The start-up is in talks with three customers to run pilot programmes in 2022 and is currently seeking to secure a €3m seed investment to support the programmes while also funding further product development, design and team expansion.
“Given the importance of climate action, it is fantastic to see Go Eve, which is developing an innovative technological solution in the area of sustainability, win this year’s programme,” said Tom Flanagan, director of enterprise and commercialisation at NovaUCD.
In addition to the UCD award, Go Eve has also bagged €10,000 sponsored by AIB, €10,000 worth of services sponsored by Bryan Maguire Business Consulting and Deloitte, and incubation space at NovaUCD valued at €12,000.
Other start-ups participating in the UCD VentureLaunch accelerator this year were Blood Brothers, Eofis, FeetAI, Giyst, La Casa, Nightleaf and Pearlabs.
In September, former UCD Start-up of the Year BioSimulytics raised €595,000 in seed funding to develop its AI-powered software for drug researchers.
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