Answer extracted from the The Pitch podcast — listen to the full episode below.
How many EV chargers has It's Electric deployed across cities?
It's Electric has deployed 54 chargers across six cities (Boston, Detroit, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Alameda) in just 10 months since Uber backed the seed round. The company moved from zero curbside chargers to live operations across these markets and is preparing to announce expansion into two additional cities in the following quarter.
This rapid deployment reflects a significant milestone for a startup founded during the pandemic with nothing more than a cardboard and rubber prototype. The speed at which It's Electric has moved from concept to multi-city operations—and secured backing from Uber, one of the largest rideshare companies in the world—underscores the urgency of solving EV charging access in urban markets.
The six-city footprint was deliberately chosen to address the infrastructure gap that impacts rideshare drivers most directly. As Tia Gordon explains in the episode, drivers in cities without adequate charging access lose significant revenue searching for and waiting at chargers, making curbside placement strategically important.
"We like to say that we're the disco and sunshine of EV charging, and we're trying to make things just better and not shitty."
Tia Gordon — Co-founder of It's Electric, a technology entrepreneur with prior experience developing embedded systems for the 9-11 Memorial and Museum of the World Trade Center. She founded It's Electric during the pandemic and won $300,000 in non-dilutive funding from Hyundai's Open EV Innovation Challenge, eventually securing $7 million in total non-dilutive grants and a $6.5 million seed round co-led by Uber and fail-up.
The timeline matters significantly in this context. New York City alone faces a regulatory mandate requiring 80,000 rideshare vehicles to be fully electric by 2030, yet the city currently has only approximately 500 public EV chargers. By comparison, London—with a similar population—has around 10,000 public chargers, illustrating the scale of the infrastructure deficit in American cities.
It's Electric's approach avoids the typical municipal procurement pitfalls that slow many competing infrastructure startups. Rather than relying solely on lengthy city contracts (which can last 5 to 15 years), the company leverages relationships with rideshare operators like Uber to accelerate deployment. The episode details how this partnership structure has allowed for faster site acquisition and permitting, a critical advantage in a space where traditional utility-backed competitors face 18-month interconnection timelines.
The next phase of expansion—into two additional cities over the following quarter—will test whether the company can sustain this deployment velocity while navigating the distinct regulatory and infrastructure challenges each new market presents. The full episode explores how It's Electric manages cost, permitting complexity, and unit economics across these diverse markets.
See also
How does It's Electric's public curbside charging address the needs of rideshare drivers versus destination charging?
Rideshare drivers lose 20-30% of their weekly revenue searching for chargers and waiting in line. Public curbside charging allows drivers to charge during quick stops between trips, directly addressing revenue loss and making EV adoption economically viable for this critical user group.
What is the revenue model and payback timeline for It's Electric chargers?
Each charger costs approximately $10,300 all-in after subsidies, with a payback period of around 18 months at 40% utilization. At these rates, a single charger generates approximately $70,000 in lifetime value, making the economics attractive for municipal and commercial operators.
What are the key barriers preventing competing companies from replicating this charging infrastructure?
Tia Gordon identifies three primary barriers: first, many cities grant exclusivity contracts ranging from 5 to 15 years; second, obtaining UL certification for new hardware takes 2 to 3 years; and third, utility interconnection agreements can take 18 months to procure, creating significant competitive moats.