Power cords are pesky -- and Meredith Perry wants to eradicate them.
Perry, 25, came up with the idea to wirelessly charge cellphones and electronic devices in 2011 when she was a senior at the University of Pennsylvania.
Perry's Santa Monica-based startup has raised $13.2 million from investors like Upfront Ventures' Mark Suster, Mark Cuban and Zappos' Tony Hsieh.
Perry and a team of 15 employees are working to perfect uBeam's first product. It will have two parts. The first is a transmitter that converts ultrasound into electricity and will be embedded into ceilings, walls or even coffee tables. (This will depend on partnerships, which Perry is working to secure.)
The second element -- the receiver -- will be embedded in a phone case, for starters. This piece receives the ultrasound and converts it into energy.
uBeam is eying next summer for its first product launch and hopes to eventually charge everything from laptop computers to hearing aid batteries.
Perry -- who interned at NASA while in college -- said she'll know she's made it "when a child doesn't know what an outlet or charging cable is (because they have gone extinct)."
