How would you explain your business model?

TopazEV runs on a flat-fee Open-as-a-Service model: operators pay a predictable monthly subscription that gets cheaper per charger as their network grows, and we never take a percentage of transaction revenue, a direct departure from the revenue-share and per-session pricing common among proprietary CSMS vendors. Plans range from a free trial and a Core tier (up to 10 chargers) through Growth (OCPI roaming, card/QR payments) and Enterprise (Plug & Charge/ISO 15118, dedicated support), up to a fully self-hosted Custom tier for the largest networks. Our team can deploy and operate TopazEV on our cloud or directly within a client's own cloud environment, and because the platform is open-source at its foundation, operators can also self-host or extend it independently, avoiding lock-in entirely if they choose to.

What makes your idea unique compared to your competitors?

CitrineOS proved operators want open-source, open-protocol charging software instead of another closed SaaS platform but building and running that software still takes engineering depth most operators don't have. We built TopazEV as the answer: an Open-as-a-Service alternative to SaaS that is cheaper (no percentage transaction fees), fully ownable by the CPO, built on open-source foundations, and deployable by our own team to either our cloud or the client's infrastructure. It removes the false choice between software you don't own and open-source software you have to build yourself.

Where do you see your company in the next 5 years?

Our vision is shaped by what we learned scaling CitrineOS: the EV charging industry isn't just short on open, interoperable software, it's short on the engineering knowledge and resources operators need to deploy it, especially when replacing an existing SaaS platform. Over the next five years, we expect TopazEV to close that gap and become the default CSMS layer for operators who want to own their charging infrastructure rather than rent it, expanding OCPI roaming and Plug & Charge (ISO 15118) support, deepening integrations with distributed energy resources (solar, storage, VPPs), and growing the open-source CitrineOS community underneath the platform. Success looks like TopazEV powering charging networks across North America and Europe as the credible, fully resourced open alternative to today's dominant proprietary SaaS platforms.