Electric vehicles (EVs) are surging in popularity, but the charging infrastructure struggles to keep pace. A major obstacle is fragmentation: charging stations and their software systems often can’t communicate smoothly, causing reliability issues and a high rate of failed charging attempts.
To tackle this head-on, German startup Pionix has stepped forward with a solution built on openness and collaboration. Their technology platform, powered by the open-source EVerest software hosted by Linux Foundation Energy, aims to unify and simplify EV charging. Combining modular software and plug-and-play hardware, Pionix offers tools that make it easier for manufacturers and operators to deploy reliable, interoperable chargers.
“We address the fragmentation of the EV charging software landscape. Currently, there is no common software stack for the industry’s many OEMs, charge point operators, fleet operators and other market players to build from. Due to poor communication and interoperability between different closed software, EV charging has become somewhat unreliable, with between 10% and 25% of charging sessions failing due to errors and maintenance issues,” said Dr Marco Möller, co-founder of Pionix to TFN.
Today, they secured more than €8 million in late seed funding, led by Ascend Capital Partners, with participation from Start-up BW Seed Fonds (managed by MBG Baden-Württemberg), Pale blue dot, Vireo Ventures, Axeleo Ventures, and other investors. This investment will fuel their mission to create a seamless global EV charging ecosystem.
Bringing open source to EV charging
Pionix was founded in 2021 by Dr Marco Möller, a physicist and entrepreneur involved in open-source projects. As the CEO, Möller brings a passion for sustainable mobility and a commitment to solving the pressing challenges facing EV infrastructure. The company started from a simple yet urgent mission: reliability in EV charging is vital for scaling the transition to clean transportation.
At the heart of Pionix’s approach is EVerest, a collaborative open-source software framework designed to serve all stakeholders in the EV charging arena, from hardware makers to service operators and fleet managers. This modular platform reduces complexity and lowers integration time and costs by providing a shared development foundation.
Möller explained, “EVerest is a full-stack operating system which spans the entire charging station software stack. Since it’s a community-governed open-source foundation, vendor lock-in is reduced and innovation across the ecosystem is accelerated. Industry-wide standardisation, which has so far been challenging to implement effectively and fairly, is encouraged without stifling innovation.”
He added, “Meanwhile, we’ve developed two enterprise products built on the EVerest stack. Pionix Cloud is our manufacturer-focused maintenance and monitoring tool that provides secure online updates, remote diagnostics, and system health insights to help maintain deployed chargers more efficiently. Our ChargeBridge hardware modules are a pre-certified, plug-and-play hardware module that simplifies the integration of charging systems.”
By using an open-source foundation called EVerest, hosted by the Linux Foundation Energy (LF Energy), the German company is helping manufacturers and operators around the world build on a shared platform, cutting costs, reducing errors, and speeding up innovation. Its approach ensures interoperability, reliability, and long-term maintainability, helping the industry scale faster and more sustainably.
On competition, Möller noted, “Some of Pionix’s key competitors are industry proprietary software stack providers like SEVENSTAX, which builds embedded communication software, IoTecha, which makes smart charging technology for EVs, and Vector, which develops software tools, hardware and services for the automotive industry.”
The project started as a small initiative and has now become one of the leading open-source efforts in clean technology, with over 600 contributors from more than 70 organisations.
What’s next?
With recent funding secured, Pionix plans to expand its engineering services and enterprise solutions, while continuing to nurture the EVerest open-source community. The company aims to unlock new avenues for collaboration, developing additional features and improving modularity to suit diverse markets around the world.
Joel Larsson, General Partner at Pale blue dot, added: “As Android standardised the smartphone ecosystem, Pionix is defining the open platform layer that will unify and scale global EV charging infrastructure.
Möller concluded, “We will strengthen our engineering and integration teams to support growing demand. Concurrently, Pionix will continue to lead and invest in the EVerest open-source community as an active steward and contributor.”
