'Smart' thermostat company CEO presents at energy conference
The chief executive officer of “smart” thermostat maker Ecobee was the keynote speaker at an energy conference that ends today in Texas.
Stuart Lombard gave the keynote address, “API Economy: The Impact to Consumers and Energy Management” at 9:45 a.m. this morning at the 2014 Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer.”
The speech was to highlight how the open application processing interface makes integration with advanced energy management systems easier. He was expected to explain how Ecobee works with products such as AutoGrid, Earth Networks to speed up “the Internet of things.”
“With consumers now embracing smart home solutions, we are on our way to understanding how the connected home will impact energy savings,” Lombard said. “At Ecobee, we’re working with many partners in a range of industries to realize the future of energy management.”
A study by Parks Associates says that half of U.S. HVAC market homes have a programmable thermostat with 11 percent of them able to connect to the Internet. The HVAC sales market for Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats is expected to grow 20 percent annually through 2017.
“Convergence in the connected home creates new opportunities for energy management partnerships, especially with open API models,” said Tom Kerber, director of home controls research at Parks Associates. “Technology trends within the connected home must be considered when developing and revising the utility home area network roadmap. Stuart’s keynote will give us a glimpse into the future about how utility, thermostat and other energy management companies will work together.”
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