Electric vehicle charging company Noodoe EV, which boasts a strategic center in Irvine, now has a new government affairs chief, Bob Huff, as the company seeks to make sure drivers can keep rolling conveniently.
The company, which has helped install and run more than 3,500 charging stations worldwide, has hired former state Senate Republican leader Huff as its director of government affairs to help shape new government standards for EV charging infrastructure at both state and local levels.
Huff, who works out of the company’s Irvine office, says there is still plenty to do on the government front.
“It’s still the Wild West in terms of regulation,” he says.
Huff served 12 years in the California state legislature, including four years as Senate Republican leader.
14 States, Dual HQ
Chief Executive Jennifer Chang said the company is active in 14 states in the U.S. and eight countries, including Canada, Mexico, Australia, Thailand and Taiwan.
She said there are plans to expand in Europe as well.
Well-known local installations include locations at the Biltmore Millennium Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, the city of Diamond Bar, and the Sheraton Universal Studio.
“Our office in Irvine is an extremely strategic center,” Chang told the Business Journal on April 8.
“Our strategy is to build a whole electric vehicle charging network infrastructure.”
Chang and Chairman John Wang are the co-founders, while venture capitalists are Noodoe’s major shareholders.
The company counts 15 total employees in the U.S., and 150 globally.
“We have two headquarters,” Irvine and Houston, said Chang, who spends much of her time in OC.
Houston is the “operations headquarters” while the company is directed out of Irvine, with about six to seven employees.
Central Brain
Noodoe provides a network operating system, Noodoe EV OS, that runs the EV charging networks for operators.
The cloud computing-based software management solution for EV power charging networks was developed in Taiwan, according to trade publication DigiTimes Asia.
It acts as the charging network’s “central brain” that runs all the charging stations across multiple locations and automates the entire operation of the EV charging network.
Noodoe EV OS fully automates everything—24/7 charging service delivery, automatic peak-hour price adjustment, automatic transaction billing, automatic payment processing, automatic bank transfer, automatic infrastructure diagnostics, and intelligent energy management, according to the company.
Huff says the company is making money by licensing its software, though revenue figures were not disclosed.
Future Plans
Huff adds: “Noodoe EV charging stations have features, such as intelligent load balancing, that will help take us faster into an all-electric future.”
Huff agrees that Orange County has become a hub for electrification of vehicles, with companies that range from EV maker Rivian to Qmerit, an EV charging and services provider. In Costa Mesa, Brytemove is also pressing ahead with the installation of charging stations and with infrastructure projects, calling itself a “market leader.”
Noodoe announced just two years ago it was moving from Walnut to Irvine, which provides major advantages for the company.
“We at Noodoe understand that California sets the bar for nation-leading EV policies. That’s why we have offices in Irvine, California to support our technological efforts and EV installation support statewide,” the company says.
California now accounts for over 40% of all zero-emission cars on the road in the U.S., according to Noodoe, citing state figures.Â
