If you want a real-life example of a mad scientist, you could do a lot worse than Nicola Tesla. His incredible genius was so far ahead of his time, and often so poorly expressed, that he died an ostracized pauper. Still, many of Tesla’s electromagnetic innovations (such as alternating current) live on today and there’s one that could find a renaissance in the next few years: wireless electricity. To horrifically simplify the concept: there’s no need for long wires to conduct electricity, we can broadcast electromagnetic waves through the air and harness the electricity using a loop of wire as a receiver. MIT researchers formed WiTricity to promote that very technology. Now, companies focused on a special application of wireless electricity have broken into the retail market with force. Powermat, and soon WiPower, provide “wireless charging” stations for home electronics. Instead of plugging in your mobile phone or handheld video game, you just strap a receiver on it, and place it on a charging mat. This “drop and charge” innovation is set to make a big impact in retail sales (Powermat has already sold more than 750,000 products in just under two months) and could be the first step to the wireless electricity revolution that changes the way we power our lives. Check out a demo from Powermat and a CES interview with WiPower after the break.

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