By Shelby Tuttle
Founded in 2020, French company FOGO was created in response to rising energy costs and the prediction that by 2050, 25 million households in France will be heated with electricity, as regulations continue to move homeowners away from gas and oil to create heat.
Since its launch three years ago, the start-up has worked with a number of architects, interior designers, and hotel chains on bespoke products. This summer, it launched its first mass-market smart heater, the FOGO Junior. The portable heater is a secondary launch to the FOGO 01, a larger, wall-mounted radiator. Both models provide an unobtrusively sleek and stylish way for users to heat their homes utilizing energy-efficient technology.
Made with FOGO’s patented Grapheat Technology, both the the FOGO Junior and the FOGO 01 combine Graphene — a revolutionary material that won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010 — with ultra-high-performance fiber-reinforced concrete that is made from recycled aggregates and enriched with organic fiber. This mixture gives the heaters unprecedented electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties, along with an extremely durable design that can be endlessly customized with various colors and textures.
The company showcased a modern, umber-colored FOGO 01 imprinted with an image of Marilyn Monroe on its outer shell at the 2023 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where it won the 2023 Innovation Award in the Smart Home category. And while the aesthetics are pleasing, the heater is also smart, using AI and temperature, humidity, and air quality sensors to learn residents’ daily habits to optimize performance. Users can also install, set, and monitor room temperature remotely from the FOGO app.
The company estimates that the combination of these technologies will enable FOGO Junior users to reduce their energy consumption by 20% compared to a classic electric home heater, and up to 60% with the Fogo 01 wall-mounted radiator.
The company is also focused on eco-friendly production, with many of its materials sourced directly from within France. Every step in its supply chain is handled within the country to keep emissions to a minimum while also supporting local jobs. And while the company is a model for the “Made in France” moniker, demand for its products is sure to spill into international territory.
“In France today, heating makes up 50% of household energy expenditure, and this is low compared to other countries,” said FOGO CEO Victor d’Halluin. “The feedback we’ve had for the design of the Junior heater has been so positive, along with the awards we’ve won, we’re positive that it’s time to share it with a wider audience.”
Preorders for the FOGO 01 and FOGO Junior are available at the company’s website at www.fogo.fr. The company estimates that shipping will begin to the U.S. in early 2024.
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