GM to equip cars with Powermat wireless charging

General Motors and Powermat have announced a commercial agreement that will eliminate the need for charging cords for personal electronic devices in many future Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac products beginning mid-2012. GM Ventures, the company’s venture capital subsidiary, will invest $5 million in Powermat to accelerate the technology’s development and support efforts to grow Powermat’s business globally.

The Chevrolet Volt, conceived as a reinvention of the automobile that would help reduce America’s dependence on oil, while providing the assurance of an extended driving range, will be one of the first GM vehicles to offer this technology. The technology is expected to revolutionize how electronic devices are charged in a car.