Alabama Mobility and Power

Everged, a leader in alternative energy and smart power solutions, and Betacom, a pioneer in stand-alone private wireless networks, today announced a strategic partnership with the Alabama Mobility & Power Center (AMP) at The University of Alabama (UA).

Together, the partners are developing a first-of-its-kind, cyber-secure innovation environment featuring a fully stand-alone 5G ORAN wireless network developed by LG Electronics and enhanced by artificial intelligence (AI) and industrial IoT (IIoT).

The collaboration will bring to life a cutting-edge testbed on University of Alabama's campus–complete with state-of-the-art charging stations, autonomous and mobile charging systems, and advanced smart grid management solutions.

This living laboratory will serve as a proving ground for emerging use cases in alternative power infrastructure, transportation, manufacturing, and autonomous robotics.

Johan Bjorklund, CEO of Betacom said, "This partnership is a testament to the power of industry and academia working together to solve complex challenges. Soon the students and faculty at the University of Alabama will be able to experience the benefits of futuristic applications powered by private 5G, and we are confident that together we will make significant strides in areas such as environmentally sustainable self-driving transit systems".

Building the Backbone for the Future of Mobility

High-performance connectivity is the foundation for autonomous systems and Industry 4.0. Unlike traditional Wi-Fi, private 5G networks deliver secure, software-managed connectivity that maintains speed and security under heavy use–supporting thousands of devices across sprawling, complex environments.

From university campuses and data centers to ports, airports, hotels and robotics facilities, this level of reliability is critical to advancing the next generation of mobility and power.

"Autonomous EV charging and next-generation mobility can't happen without secure, high-performance connectivity," said Jefferson W. Smith, CEO of Everged. "We are incredibly excited about this collaboration with Betacom and The University of Alabama.

By combining our expertise with Betacom's leadership in private 5G and the university's innovative research environment, we can accelerate the development of autonomous systems, resilient EV charging, and smart power infrastructure—and help shape the future of mobility and energy."

Powering Innovation through Partnerships

By combining Everged's expertise in smart power technologies with Betacom's leadership in secure private 5G and leveraging LG Electronics newly developed UltraMax 5G ORAN platform, the initiative will accelerate Industry 4.0 adoption while strengthening the nation's power infrastructure.

The partnership also expands the University of Alabama's innovation ecosystem and on-campus research  capacity, providing faculty, students, and industry partners with a unique environment to advance next-generation technologies in a completely secure setting. 

"This partnership represents a significant step forward for The University of Alabama and the Alabama Mobility & Power Center," said Mike Oatridge, Executive Director of AMP. "By combining secure 5G ORAN capabilities with advanced energy and charging solutions, we are creating a unique environment for research, innovation, and real-world testing.

This collaboration will accelerate the development of smarter, more resilient infrastructure while opening new opportunities for our students, faculty, and industry partners to lead in the future of mobility and power."

Joonsung Lee, VP of 5G Product at LG Electronics, Korea said "LG Electronics is pleased to collaborate with Betacom, Everged and Alabama Mobility and Power to provide an easily scalable, redundant, on-prem and secure CBRS-based enterprise ORAN solution across the campus, leveraging our fully virtualized UltraMax portfolio".