Why Electric Cars Need Behavioural Science, Not Bigger Batteries! With Rory Sutherland

Video Description

In this week’s episode Imogen talks to behavioural economics expert Rory Sutherland who explains why understanding human psychology might be more important than building bigger batteries. Rory, who founded Ogilvy's behavioral science unit, shares brilliant insights on everything from why we need to "solve for anxiety rather than range" to why giving people rail vouchers might increase car usage (yes, really). This episode is packed with counterintuitive ideas that will change how you think about transport, behavior change, and innovation. 00:00 - Introduction 02:04 - What is behavioural economics? 03:08 - Range anxiety: Solving for anxiety, not range 06:32 - Why speeding barely saves time 10:28 - Transport for Humans: The bus information problem 16:51 - Why 95% of EV drivers never go back 22:37 - Network effects and why behavioral change takes time 28:10 - Travel smarter, don't travel faster 33:25 - Better alternatives to EV grants 38:03 - Removing political heat from EVs 39:30 - The Heathrow Pod: Why it's magical and valuable 44:23 - The heat pump vs. air conditioning debate 46:51 - Why test drives should be two weeks, not three days 49:41 - Why psychologists arrive too late to solve problems Why not come and join us at our next Everything Electric expo: https://everythingelectric.show Check out our sister channel Everything Electric CARS: https://www.youtube.com/@fullychargedshow Support our StopBurningStuff campaign: https://www.patreon.com/STOPBurningStuff Become an Everything Electric Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/fullychargedshow Become a YouTube member: use JOIN button above Buy the Fully Charged Guide to Electric Vehicles & Clean Energy : https://buff.ly/2GybGt0 Subscribe for episode alerts and the Everything Electric newsletter: https://fullycharged.show/zap-sign-up/ Visit: https://FullyCharged.Show Find us on X: https://x.com/Everyth1ngElec Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/officialeverythingelectric To partner, exhibit or sponsor at our award-winning expos email: [email protected] Everything Electric MELBOURNE - Melbourne Showgrounds 14th, 15th & 16th November 2025 Everything Electric SYDNEY - Sydney Olympic Park 6th, 7th & 8th March 2026 EE NORTH (Harrogate) - 8th & 9th May 2026 EE WEST (Cheltenham) - 12th & 13th June 2026 EE GREATER LONDON (Twickenham) - 11th & 12th Sept 2026 #fullychargedshow #everythingelectricshow #homeenergy #cleanenergy #battery #electriccars #electric-vehicles-uk