Dell heir and SpaceX alum push home battery storage
Zach Dell, son of Dell Technologies founder Michael Dell, has partnered with a former SpaceX engineer to launch Base Power, a startup that installs battery storage systems in residential backyards. The company aims to make home batteries a mainstream solution for reducing electric bills and supporting the power grid.
Batteries without solar panels
Base Power places 39-kilowatt-hour batteries, about the size of an air-conditioning unit, next to a home’s electric meter. These systems allow homeowners to store energy when rates are low, typically during daylight, and use it during peak demand or sell excess power back to utilities. The company claims its batteries can sustain a household for 36 to 72 hours during outages.
Although home battery storage has historically been tied to home solar power, the technology is increasingly showing up in homes with or without solar panels. The change responds to rising demand for energy storage as utilities face pressure from data centers, electric vehicles, and extreme weather.
Related: Doom runs in Microsoft Paint via clipboard trick
Installations are accelerating. Base Power currently sets up about 100 batteries daily and plans to double that rate by late 2026. It has already deployed 550 megawatt-hours of storage, comparable to a large utility-scale project. Operations span Texas, California, Arizona, and Hawaii, where state policies favor battery adoption.
State incentives fill the gap
Federal tax credits for residential solar and battery systems expired in 2023, increasing costs for homeowners. States have introduced their own incentives to compensate. Hawaii offers $400 per kilowatt of installed battery capacity, while California provides payments for homeowners who contribute power to the grid.
These policies have driven record growth. U.S. homeowners added 673 megawatts of battery storage in the first quarter of this year. That total represented 1.3 gigawatt-hours of the 8.4 gigawatt-hours of energy storage installed nationwide during the period.
Advocates see broader benefits. Early investor Antonio Gracias and co-founder Justin Lopas, both connected to SpaceX, view the technology as a way to boost domestic manufacturing. Others consider it essential for meeting the energy needs of AI data centers, which will require significantly more electricity in the near future.
Related: Samsung Creates AI Chip for Home Computers
Base Power adapts its model to local conditions. In regions with supportive policies, it partners with grid operators. Elsewhere, it markets batteries as backup power while still participating in grid programs. The strategy resembles how some electric vehicle owners already sell stored energy back to utilities.
A growing market
U.S. homeowners installed a record 673 megawatts of storage in the first quarter of this year, according to the Energy Information Administration. The American Clean Power Association and Wood Mackenzie report that home batteries accounted for 1.3 gigawatt-hours of the 8.4 gigawatt-hours of total energy storage added nationwide during the quarter.
For now, Base Power is prioritizing expansion. The company’s long-term vision is to make home batteries as common as solar panels, even in areas with limited sunlight.
