Sure, whatever. You can listen to his set below. Beyond the tunes, I was interested in the capacity for an EV as a reliable energy conduit. We’ve written a fair bit about Vehicle-to-home or (V2H) charging, where an electric car can share the energy it receives from the grid and use it to power a home or business. You can’t yet fully power your home with a Tesla (guess people wouldn’t buy a Powerwall then). But there are loads of potential opportunities and use cases where a Tesla could be used to power other electric devices across a range of scenarios. Here are a few of my favorites, in greater detail:
Glamping
What happens when you like the idea of camping but miss the comforts of a bed, running water, and not having to pee in the bushes? Glamping. It’s a portmanteau of “glamorous” and “camping” and, depending on your opinion, includes the best bits of both. Imagine a Tesla powering a mini-fridge to chill the beer and power the blender to make margaritas? Or power up the “caraoke” to scare local wildlife? And of course, charge your phone and laptop. You only travel to places with reliable Wi-Fi, right? It’s not a new idea either. The 2021 Ford F-150 Limited hybrid features a 7.2-kilowatt Pro Power Onboard system, which allows you to use the F-150 as a generator. The hybrid’s lithium-ion battery and twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 make it possible to plug several electronic items into outlets in the bed or cabin and have them powered for as long as the truck has gasoline. Some owners in Texas even powered parts of their homes for days during the winter storm crisis of 2021, using their trucks as emergency generators. Combine a few Teslas on a full charge, and the possibilities are vast — providing the Teslas themselves can be charged, of course.
Mobile blood bank
Whatever your personal feelings about Elon Musk, he spends a portion of his time doing good deeds when he could just be sitting on his ass on a beach drinking margaritas with supermodels. Take the donated Starlink terminals to help keep the internet alive in Ukraine. Okay, US taxpayers paid for a chunk of it, but Starlink created the satellites and infrastructure in the first place. So, I’d like to see a bunch of Tesla’s powering mobile blood banks in local neighborhoods. According to the Red Cross, only around three percent of age-eligible people donate blood yearly. That’s pretty dire. And the idea of vehicles charging medical infrastructure is a strong one. Tonneau company Worksport makes TerraVis, a mobile panel and solar generator system that uses solar panels on a pickup truck’s tonneau for charging. Besides charging vehicles, the TerraVis also can provide power on worksites, camping trips, and in the case of natural disasters and medical emergencies. Imagine a mobile outdoor blood bank powered by Teslas. It could help the victims of car crashes. Let’s face it. We’re a while from the future promise of fully autonomous vehicles that avoid accidents without drivers. But blood is always needed for emergency health. And most blood banks globally are still powered by diesel which is bad. An EV powered-mobile blood bank would, at the very least, give a boost to Tesla’s PR outside of the fanboy bubble.
Mine dogecoin
Come on, surely it’s a no-brainer? While there are no official figures, a decent chunk of Tesla owners probably invest in crypto. And we all know how Elon loves Dogecoin. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 4, 2021 I’ve heard of Tesla drivers charging their vehicles using the Superchargers en masse, while simultaneously taking Zoom calls. Imagine if they were also making money through crypto mining simultaneously? And the idea of car charging and crypto is not just a pipe dream for Tesla owners. Currently in development, Daymak’s Avvenire Spiritus EV will come with a cryptocurrency infrastructure called Daymak Nebula — an onboard GPU embedded into the Spiritus dashboard. From here, the owner can harvest crypto WHILE THE VEHICLE IS RUNNING! The car expects to roll out commercially in 2023. And if the idea of Tesla crypto mining took off, we really could imagine a Gigacoin or a Teslacoin.
Power an outdoor drive-in
Remember drive-ins? Me neither, although I have a vague memory of going to one as a child. Surely, a Tesla-powered drive-in would be easy, and a lot quieter than using a generator or being restricted to locations with electric plugs. Horror movie in the woods, anyone? All you need is a large screen and a car parking area for film-goers. And you could also add a few chargers around the place. Heck, you could be watching movies, mining crypto, making margaritas, and giving blood all at the same time! That’s one for the future, folks. I am all in.
