A new report has highlighted the companies which are assisting in scaling-up electric vehicle (EV) adoption through smarter charging, energy integration and battery intelligence.
The Electric 40 report by digital transformation company Futurice ranks the global players operating in the UK across four core metrics: market execution and innovation, technology capability and impact.
Start-up Axle Energy has taken the top spot with the firm connecting more than 100,000 devices from EV chargers to home batteries into UK energy markets. Its one-API approach rapidly turns hardware into grid-responsive assets, enabling households to earn revenue from flexibility with minimal friction, it said.
In second place was Octopus Energy – now Britain’s largest domestic energy supplier – and provider of a significant share of the power behind public EV charging. Its Electroverse roaming platform connects more than one million chargers worldwide, while its new V2G Power Pack tariff offers a blueprint for smart, consumer-led integration, it added.
Coming in third is ev.energy which has grown from a UK smart-charging app into a global flexibility platform spanning more than 80% of Europe’s major EV and smart-charger brands followed by E.ON, with its energy/charging bundles (including for fleets).
Fastned completes the E40 top five, with its ultra-rapid charging brand in more than 400 European locations, up to 400kW charging speeds, and a recent €200m raise aimed at expanding its continental footprint.
The report highlights how developments in battery lifecycle management and performance optimisation are helping to shape a more resilient and flexible system. AI is another increasingly crucial asset within this picture, it said, alongside vehicle-to-everything (V2X) integrations that turn EVs into grid-responsive energy assets.
David Mitchell, Chief Growth Officer at Futurice said:
“The EV market is moving fast, and the Electric 40 2026 reflects where it’s heading next. Our top companies show that the industry is moving beyond vehicle hardware to focus on how EVs can impact the broader energy ecosystem.
“We’ve recognised businesses with systems agility and the ability to connect vehicles, charging and the grid: capabilities that will define who wins this next phase.”
“The UK’s EV market is gaining real momentum, BEVs now account for 23.4% of new car sales, but cost and confidence still hold many drivers back. To keep adoption moving, we need to match charging rollout with smarter, integrated energy systems, and sustain the incentives that make going electric the obvious choice. The E40 2026 shows UK innovators are already building the capabilities we need, from battery intelligence to grid flexibility, to make electrification work at scale.”
Graphic of report courtesy of Futurice
