Amber expands smart charging to MG, XPeng, Audi EVs; V2G trial maker list still pending

Renewable energy services provider Amber Electric says that its automated smart charging feature now supports all MG, Xpeng, and Audi models that have built-in connectivity, although it is yet to say if more car makers are signing on to its expanded V2G trial.

The smart charging feature, known as Amber for Evs, was originally launched in late 2024, and was focused only on Tesla electric vehicles (EVs), enabling users to access the cheapest wholesale electricity prices to charge their EVs.

Amber for EVs simply requires users to tell the app when the car is needed and how much charge will be necessary, leaving Amber to automatically charge the car with rooftop solar or the cheapest wholesale energy prices – which means that sometimes charging is free, or even pays out to charge.

“The idea is to help customers get as much free charging as possible,” says Chris Thompson, Amber Electric co-CEO. “We are even offering EV owners to get paid to charge.”

Amber has now expanded its offering to more drivers, adding support for all MG, XPeng, and Audi models that have built-in connectivity.

Amber customers pay wholesale electricity prices, which change every five minutes as supply and demand shift across the grid. Amber for EVs starts or stops charging so as to catch the cheapest wholesale price windows.

While Amber for EVs has added support for extra EV models, some functionality is still limited to Tesla EVs, specifically the ability to speed up or slow down charging. However, Amber did promise they are “working” on making this feature available for all EV models supported.

Amber is also conducting the country’s biggest vehicle-to-grid trial, and with the support of ARENA has expanded this from a targeted 50 EVs to up to 1,000. Until now, only BYD has allowed its vehicles to take part, but the company is aiming to expand this to at least four car makers. There is no word yet on which car makers have taken up the offer, if any.

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