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ELEMENT 31

What Genie needs from the home, and what it leaves alone

Genie asks for solar surplus, a view of the energy flow, and an outbound internet connection. It leaves the grid, the network, the devices, and the people alone.

IN SHORT

Genie needs little from a home: solar surplus to run on, a reading of the home's energy flow so it can tell when surplus exists, and an ordinary internet connection for sealed work to arrive and leave. It leaves everything else alone. It never draws from or sends to the grid, never watches the home network or devices, and reports only its own energy use and health.

A home appliance earns its place by taking little and touching less. Here is the short account of what Genie takes from the house it lives in and what it keeps its hands off, written so that someone deciding whether to make room for it can see the whole arrangement at once.

What it needs

Surplus. Genie runs only on the power the home's panels make that the home is not using. When there is no surplus, Genie does nothing. It does not substitute grid power, because it never draws from the grid.

A reading of the energy flow. To know whether there is surplus, Genie has to watch what the panels are making against what the home is using. That live comparison is the whole basis of the appliance; without it, Genie cannot tell surplus from shortfall and would not run.

An internet connection. Ordinary home broadband is enough. Work arrives sealed over that connection and results leave sealed over it. Genie makes only outbound connections, so nothing on the home router needs opening or forwarding.

That is the list. Genie does not need a battery, and it does not need anyone in the house to do anything on a schedule.

What it leaves alone

The grid. Genie never sends power to the grid and never draws power from it. It does not change the home's arrangement with the utility, and it cannot add to the home's grid bill. This is enforced inside the machine.

The home's own demand. The home is served first, always. If the household wants the power, the household has it, and Genie steps aside automatically, every time, without being asked.

The network, the devices, and the people. Genie does not watch the home network. It does not look at what devices are connected or what they are doing. It does not observe the people in the house. The sealed jobs it runs cannot see the home either, in the other direction.

The data. Genie reports its own energy use and health, and nothing else. There is no other category of information leaving the house.

What the household controls

The household can turn Genie off at any time, for as long as they like, with no penalty. While it is off nothing runs and nothing is earned, and that is the only consequence. Turning it back on is equally simple.

The household can also see everything Genie is doing on their behalf. The app shows energy used, work performed, work sold, and money owed. On a quiet day the figures are small and the app shows them small. There is no part of Genie's activity that the household is kept from seeing, and no part of the home that Genie sees.

Where the line is written down

These are not preferences that might change with a software update. Element 31 treats surplus only, never the grid, and private by design as rules of the machine, and lists them on the principles page. Genie is in development, and the full specifications, including compatibility and the exact way the energy reading is taken, will be published before anyone confirms a place.

For where the appliance physically goes, see Where Genie sits in the house. For the privacy rule on its own, see Private by design.

Questions this raises

Does Genie need the household to do anything day to day?
No. It follows the sun and the home's own demand on its own. The app is there for the household to look at, not something that needs tending.
Does Genie need any changes to the home router?
No. Genie makes only outbound connections and never accepts incoming ones, so nothing needs opening or forwarding. Ordinary home broadband is enough.
What is the consequence of turning Genie off?
Nothing runs and nothing is earned while it is off, and that is the only consequence. There is no penalty and no minimum, and turning it back on is just as simple.

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