The merger of Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP) and the Power Matters Alliance (PMA) has completed and the merged entity has announced their new name: AirFuel Alliance.
Wireless Charging history
Prior to this merger, there were 3 competing wireless charging standards – A4WP, PMA, and the Qi standard championed by the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC). PMA and Qi supported inductive charging, while A4WP championed resonant charging.
Qi has led the market with the most devices released that supports the Qi standard, and is now developing resonant technology that is compliant with existing Qi devices. PMA capable devices were primarily found in the United States and A4WP’s technology was still in development and not available in commercial devices yet.
What does this mean for wireless charging?
Overall, the merger of A4WP and PMA is a significant step forward in reaching a single standard for wireless charging and could help boost adoption by removing some of the concerns regarding compatibility.
Currently, Qi is still the dominant player in the wireless charging market with the most devices available in market. However, both the WPC and AirFuel Alliance have major device manufacturers as backers, and a clear winning standard has yet to emerge.
photo credit: Mobile in full force at OpenCamp via photopin (license)
