Fully charged: Meet the local leader in battery power for the Pacific Northwest
Grayson Shor, founder and executive director of the Pacific Northwest Battery Collaborative, is a force that unites and empowers the region’s battery community.
The launch of this partnership in October 2024 was so popular that seats were sold out and the group is now taking RSVPs as places continue to be at a premium. The nonprofit hosted 1,400 people at 17 different events in Washington, Oregon and online. Shor’s latest project is helping to create a battery-focused miniseries that he describes as a cross between Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” and “Cosmos.”
Who knew energy storage devices could create so much excitement?
“Batteries are popular right now,” Shor said.
Batteries make the adoption of an electric car even more attractive as they become more powerful and faster to charge. They are ubiquitous given the pervasive use of phones and consumer electronics. And as electricity demand increases due to data centers and other energy users, they are a quick, affordable way to add more power to the grid.
“We’re installing more grid batteries by 2025 than there were in the entire world just two years ago,” Shor said. “This is not just growth, it is a rethinking of the way our economy works.”
A battery ecosystem is emerging
Shor has spent nearly a decade working on sustainability, circular economy and battery-related issues at organizations ranging from the US State Department to Amazon to startups. When the former diplomat came to Seattle from Washington more than two years ago, he was impressed by the state’s battery industry.
That included the launch of electric aircraft, other chemicals such as sodium batteries, and next-generation silicon battery materials, as well as R&D facilities and support at the University of Washington’s Clean Energy Institute.
But he realized that the industry does not have the connections that include companies, academics, entrepreneurs and investors, and they are willing to deal with it. The industry welcomes his efforts.
“I pay attention to people who are trying to bring the community together, and in the Northwest battery version and the application ecosystem, Grayson Shor has been an endless force that wants to build and grow our unique energy,” said Dan Schwartz, founding director of the Clean Energy Institute.
Tom Gurski, founder of plug-in hybrid motor startup Blue Dot Motorworks, attended the group’s events. “In a district known for its lack of information its events and happy hours are very important in breaking down silos and getting people connected,” Gurski said.
Outside of the construction community, Shor is lobbying for support for local and state policies that boost the industry and get more batteries in the state. Energy storage devices have important societal benefits, he said, including better grid performance and helping meet energy needs during peak demand.
‘Battery Life’
Shor is also the founder and CEO of Buckstop Products, an “urban mining” startup that helps recover valuable minerals from electronics waste. He also serves as director of policy and government affairs for the Volta Foundation, the world’s largest battery industry association.
And there is a TV series, called “The Battery Life.” The Crew recently spent three days in the Seattle area filming the first episode, visiting battery company Group14 Technologies and interviewing startups at the UW’s Clean Energy Test Beds.
“We walk through factories. We meet CEOs and founders, we go deep into their technology,” said Shor. But the series also has a “‘Carl Sagan vibe,'” he added, explaining “how does this technology affect people, and why does it matter to the average person?”
Additional episodes will be shot in Portland and Vancouver, BC The plan is to broadcast the series later this year at power events in Oregon and Las Vegas, as well as other locations.
Future Pacific Northwest Battery Partnerships include a career fair and fundraising gala. Shor also envisions a convention where entrepreneurs and innovators can set up booths to showcase their technology. Ideas keep coming.
“This is my small role in trying to deal with climate change, trying to advance energy change,” he said. “It helps with equality, it helps with economic opportunities…. It makes me happy.”
