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Energy Software Development

Accelerate Sustainable Tech with Top Software Teams.

epicX is your strategic partner for energy software development, helping clean-energy startups and sustainable tech businesses hire ready-to-deploy energy software developers, ready to build intelligent, sustainable energy solutions.

You're in Great Company

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Your Partner for Renewable Energy & Software Talent

With deep experience delivering energy software development, epicX engineers know the challenges of energy grids, IoT sensors, and clean tech platforms. We provide energy software engineers for hire trusted for domain knowledge, security, and scalable solutions.

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4+ Years working with renewable energy and sustainable tech startups

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Custom energy software solutions from MVP to fully scaled platforms

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Expertise in IoT energy analytics, smart grid, and Cloud infrastructure

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Data-secure development compliant with NERC, FERC, or ESG standards

The Scope Of Our Energy Software Development Services

Energy demands innovation. We offer energy software developers for hire who understand clean tech workflows. They deliver customized renewable energy tools, smart grid platforms, and sustainable energy app development built to scale.

Renewable Energy Management Systems

Our talent builds renewable energy management systems (REMS) software. These optimize solar, wind, and other clean energy asset performance.

Solving The Talent Gap In Energy Innovation

Energy software development faces a critical shortage of specialized talent. epicX directly addresses this by providing pre-vetted energy software engineers, making your hiring process efficient and precise.

Why epicX is Your Technology Partner for Energy Software Succes​s

Building advanced energy software needs more than just code. We provide energy software developers who understand industry demands, sustainability goals, and critical infrastructure reliability. epicX offers specialized talent to accelerate your impact in energy tech.

Proven Energy Tech Expertise

Work with engineers who've built smart grid software, REMS software, and EV charging software. They are industry-ready from day one.

No Proxy Hiring – Ever

You interview and approve the exact energy software developer you'll be working with. What you see is what you get. No hidden freelancers or bait-and-switch tactics.

Pre-Vetted Energy Software Engineers

Our candidates are tested for domain knowledge in SCADA systems development, predictive maintenance software, and energy data analytics. They are rigorously screened.

48-Hour Developer Match

Get 2-3 relevant, pre-vetted profiles within 48 hours. Start building your energy software solutions fast, with zero hiring delays.

Direct Access, No Middle Management

Work directly with your energy software developers. No coordinators or intermediaries slowing you down. This ensures clear communication and real-time collaboration.

14-Day Risk-Free Trial

Test your energy software developer on real tasks. Pay only if you're completely satisfied after two weeks. This makes your hiring decision risk-free.

Scalable Energy Solutions

Our developers build systems that grow with your energy business. From startup to enterprise, we ensure your energy technology scales seamlessly.

Compliance-Ready Development

Ensure your energy software meets regulatory standards. Our developers understand NERC, FERC, and ESG compliance requirements for energy systems.

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Ready to Hire Software Developers to Build Energy Solutions? 

Maximize ROI with Vetted Energy Tech Talent

Our energy software developers deliver measurable outcomes in efficiency, uptime, compliance, and launch speed for energy startups and utilities.

25%

Save 25% on operational costs through automation and optimized energy asset use.​

40%

Improve grid uptime by 40% with predictive maintenance software and performance insights.

30%

Cut time-to-market for new energy modules by 30% via agile pipelines and fast team matching.

Build Your Energy Tech Team Without the Hiring Headache

Partner with top energy software developers through a simple, transparent process. No recruiting delays. No placement dropouts. Just product-focused talent ready to build.

01Book Your Discovery Call
Start with a quick discovery call to understand your vision, sustainability goals, grid integrations, and tech stack. We'll outline your ideal team structure and hiring path.
02Get matched with skilled energy engineers
Skip months of interviews. Get pre-vetted engineers with proven energy tech experience within 48 hours. You review detailed profiles, test them on real work, and only hire when confident.
03Seamless onboarding into your workflows
Your selected engineers plug right into your stack and workflows. Whether building from scratch or scaling, expect tight collaboration, fast iteration, and full transparency from day one.
04Long-term support without drop-off
We stay post-hire to ensure ongoing performance. Whether it's scaling, regulatory updates, or support, your team remains reliable as your energy software product evolves.

Don't Take Our Word for It,
Hear from Founders Like You

Trustpilot rating
G2 rating
GoodFirms rating
G2 rating
DesignRush rating

"It was the fastest we've ever hired vetted devs. And the quality? Outstanding."

Hunain
Hunain
PM, SmartBenefits

"We were drowning in tech debt. epicX plugged in senior devs fast. Absolute lifesavers."

John Stevens
John Stevens
CTO, MedCure

"We scaled our engineering team by 3x without touching recruitment or burning budget."

Rosalia Miller
Rosalia Miller
CTO, VISBA-AI

"We’ve worked with fancy agencies before. This felt different. Just pure focus and execution."

Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Co-founder, FineWave

"It was the fastest we've ever hired vetted devs. And the quality? Outstanding."

Hunain
Hunain
PM, SmartBenefits

"We were drowning in tech debt. epicX plugged in senior devs fast. Absolute lifesavers."

John Stevens
John Stevens
CTO, MedCure

"We scaled our engineering team by 3x without touching recruitment or burning budget."

Rosalia Miller
Rosalia Miller
CTO, VISBA-AI

"We’ve worked with fancy agencies before. This felt different. Just pure focus and execution."

Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Co-founder, FineWave

"It was the fastest we've ever hired vetted devs. And the quality? Outstanding."

Hunain
Hunain
PM, SmartBenefits

"We were drowning in tech debt. epicX plugged in senior devs fast. Absolute lifesavers."

John Stevens
John Stevens
CTO, MedCure

"We scaled our engineering team by 3x without touching recruitment or burning budget."

Rosalia Miller
Rosalia Miller
CTO, VISBA-AI

"We’ve worked with fancy agencies before. This felt different. Just pure focus and execution."

Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Co-founder, FineWave

"Everything was perfect. No hand-holding, no surprises. Just people who know what they’re doing."

Dr. Anya Sharma
Dr. Anya Sharma
CTO, AI/SaaS Startup

"No fluff, no waiting. Just solid engineers who got stuff done from week one."

Erik Lundgren
Erik Lundgren
CEO, Healthtech Startup

"Never knew hiring could be this calm and predictable. Such a relief for our product team."

Sarah Chen
Sarah Chen
Lead Engineer, Fintech Startup

"Highly recommend them as a no-bullshit partner for anyone trying to scale engineering without chaos."

Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson
CTO at FinWave

"Everything was perfect. No hand-holding, no surprises. Just people who know what they’re doing."

Dr. Anya Sharma
Dr. Anya Sharma
CTO, AI/SaaS Startup

"No fluff, no waiting. Just solid engineers who got stuff done from week one."

Erik Lundgren
Erik Lundgren
CEO, Healthtech Startup

"Never knew hiring could be this calm and predictable. Such a relief for our product team."

Sarah Chen
Sarah Chen
Lead Engineer, Fintech Startup

"Highly recommend them as a no-bullshit partner for anyone trying to scale engineering without chaos."

Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson
CTO at FinWave

"Everything was perfect. No hand-holding, no surprises. Just people who know what they’re doing."

Dr. Anya Sharma
Dr. Anya Sharma
CTO, AI/SaaS Startup

"No fluff, no waiting. Just solid engineers who got stuff done from week one."

Erik Lundgren
Erik Lundgren
CEO, Healthtech Startup

"Never knew hiring could be this calm and predictable. Such a relief for our product team."

Sarah Chen
Sarah Chen
Lead Engineer, Fintech Startup

"Highly recommend them as a no-bullshit partner for anyone trying to scale engineering without chaos."

Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson
CTO at FinWave

Latest Insights

9/29/2025Generative AI

Instant Checkout: OpenAI Brings E-Commerce to ChatGPT

TL;DR

  • OpenAI launched Instant Checkout in ChatGPT for US users, starting with Etsy sellers and soon over 1M Shopify merchants.
  • The feature lets users buy directly inside ChatGPT without visiting external sites.
  • Powered by Stripe’s Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP), now open-sourced, enabling broad merchant integration.
  • Could challenge Google’s search ads and Amazon’s marketplace dominance by making chatbots the new storefronts.
  • OpenAI plans multi-item carts, global expansion, and deeper AI-driven shopping in the future.

Ever wished you could just chat your groceries home or order that perfect rug straight through your chat window? Your prayers may have just been answered.

OpenAI has rolled out Instant Checkout inside ChatGPT, and it’s not a small experiment.

For the first time, the app’s 700 million weekly users can go from asking a question to making a purchase without ever leaving the conversation. No tabs. No redirects. Just ask, pick, and buy.

The feature launches first with Etsy sellers and is set to expand to Shopify’s million-plus merchants.

This isn’t just convenience, it’s a complete rewiring of how online shopping works. Instead of Google or Amazon owning discovery, ChatGPT now holds the keys to product search and purchase in one place.

If AI chat becomes the storefront, who gets disrupted and who gets ahead? That’s where the story gets interesting.

What Exactly Is Instant Checkout?

Instant Checkout is OpenAI’s new in-chat shopping system. Instead of showing you a link to a product page, ChatGPT now lets you complete the entire purchase flow inside the conversation. Here’s how it works:

  • You type a natural query like “Best noise-cancelling headphones under $200”.
  • ChatGPT shows relevant product suggestions.
  • If Instant Checkout is supported, a Buy button appears right inside the chat.
  • You confirm payment and shipping details without leaving the app.
  • The order is placed, and you get confirmation instantly.

For now, it only handles single-item purchases, but OpenAI has already confirmed plans for multi-item carts and bundled shopping.

Importantly, results remain unsponsored and relevance-driven; no merchant is paying to rank higher.

That keeps trust intact while shifting the entire shopping experience into the AI interface.

Here's what Nick Turley (Head of ChatGPT at OpenAI) had to say:

Background: From Product Search to Full Commerce

The seeds for Instant Checkout were planted months ago. Back in April 2025, OpenAI began quietly testing shopping features inside ChatGPT.

At first, it looked a lot like Google search results. You’d ask for a product, and ChatGPT would show you links to retailers where you could click out and buy. It worked, but it still felt like a traditional search with AI layered on top.

The latest update takes that halfway step and cuts it out completely. Now the discovery, selection, and transaction all happen inside ChatGPT.

This shift is about more than convenience. It marks OpenAI’s clearest move yet into e-commerce. Instead of sending traffic away, the platform becomes the storefront itself.

There is also a financial story here. OpenAI spends billions each year to train and run its models. Subscription revenue from ChatGPT Plus helps, but it is not enough.

With Instant Checkout, OpenAI finally unlocks a direct revenue stream: a transaction fee every time a sale is completed in the chat. For users, the experience stays free.

For merchants, the cost is a small commission. For OpenAI, it is a way to fund the infrastructure that keeps ChatGPT running and expanding.

The Role of Stripe & the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP)

Stripe is more than a payments partner here; it’s co-architect of the system powering Instant Checkout.

OpenAI and Stripe built a backend protocol called Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to handle secure, AI-driven transactions between ChatGPT and merchants.

AI Magazine confirms that ACP is open source.

Here’s how things work under the hood:

  • When you tap “Buy” inside ChatGPT, the chat passes your order details securely through ACP to the merchant’s backend. The merchant then accepts or declines the order, processes payment with their existing gateway, and handles fulfillment.
  • Merchants already on Stripe can enable Instant Checkout by adding a small amount of code. For merchants using other payment systems, ACP supports a “Shared Payment Token API” or a “Delegated Payments Spec” so they can still connect.
  • Payment tokens used in ACP are encrypted and only valid for the specific amount and merchant. This limits exposure of the sensitive details.
  • OpenAI emphasizes that it is not the merchant of record. Merchants keep control over customer relationships, payment processing, returns, and support. ChatGPT acts as a conduit — the “AI agent” that communicates between user and merchant.
  • Stripe’s leadership sees this shift as part of a broader “economic infrastructure for AI” — meaning payment systems will need to be rearchitected around AI.

Because ACP is open source, developers and merchants can inspect, adopt, or adapt it.

That openness lowers barriers for smaller sellers to join the ecosystem rather than being locked into a proprietary platform.

ChatGPT vs. Amazon: Who Owns the Storefront?

Amazon has been the starting point for countless online purchases. In Q2 2025 alone, Amazon’s e-commerce segment (excluding AWS) generated $147.9 billion in revenues.

Yet with Instant Checkout, Amazon risks losing the “first stop” status. ChatGPT promotes that its product suggestions are “organic and unsponsored”, in sharp contrast to Amazon, where placement often depends on paid ads or fee structures.

If users come to trust ChatGPT’s recommendations, Amazon’s role as the discoverability gateway could erode. Over time:

  • Amazon’s reliance on internal search & ads will be tested
  • Competing brands could bypass Amazon by appearing directly inside AI assistants
  • Marketplace dynamics may shift toward AI-friendly integrations

OpenAI isn’t trying to be a marketplace. It positions itself as a neutral digital shopper interface.

But by capturing discovery + checkout, ChatGPT could gradually claim the storefront ground Amazon once held exclusively.

Consumer Experience and Trust

For shoppers, the headline benefit is convenience. No more jumping between tabs, logging into accounts, or abandoning carts halfway through.

With Instant Checkout, discovery and purchase live in the same chat, cutting the friction that usually makes people give up on a transaction halfway.

But convenience alone isn’t enough. Trust is the wildcard. Users are being asked to let a chatbot process sensitive payment details, and that feels unfamiliar compared to a secure checkout page.

OpenAI is clear that it is not the merchant of record. Sellers still handle payment processing, shipping, and support. The Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) helps here, since its tokenized design limits data exposure and prevents sensitive details from being passed around unnecessarily.

Adoption will hinge on whether everyday consumers believe that protection is enough.

Future Plans and What’s Next

OpenAI has already signaled where Instant Checkout is heading.

Right now, it works for single items, but carts and multi-item purchases are on the roadmap.

A global rollout is planned once Stripe and merchant integrations stabilize. The company is even hinting at something bigger: fully agentic commerce, where you might tell ChatGPT to reorder your groceries, book a flight, or pay a utility bill automatically.

That vision moves shopping from being manual clicks to delegated tasks handled by an AI agent.

These shifts highlight the rise of AI-native innovation, where commerce isn’t bolted onto existing systems but designed directly into conversational experiences.

For startups and merchants, it creates an entirely new layer of technical complexity. Reliable technology partners will matter more than ever.

Companies like epicX, which specialize in building and scaling AI-driven applications with dedicated developer teams, are already helping businesses prepare for this kind of disruption.

It’s not just about building apps anymore; it’s about future-proofing for the agentic era of commerce.

FAQs

Does it cost more to use Instant Checkout?

No. Users won’t see any extra fees or markup for using Instant Checkout. The cost burden falls on merchants. OpenAI charges a small commission on completed transactions, but the user pays the same price they would on the merchant site.

Who processes payments, shipping, returns, and support?

Merchants remain responsible for all backend operations, handling payment processing, order fulfillment, shipping, returns, and customer support. OpenAI does not become the merchant of record. ChatGPT acts as the interface, passing the transaction request securely to the merchant’s systems.

What happens if an order fails or shows a card hold?

A “card hold” is a temporary bank authorization. If, for any reason, the transaction isn’t completed, for example, the merchant rejects or fails to fulfill it, that hold expires and drops off your card. It doesn’t permanently block funds.

Can I see my order history or receipts?

Yes. Your completed orders will appear under “Orders” inside ChatGPT settings, and you’ll also receive standard receipts from the merchant via email. OpenAI retains the interface visibility, so you can check past purchases inside the chat UI.

What if I want a refund or a cancellation?

You’ll need to deal with the merchant directly for refunds or cancellations. Since OpenAI is not the merchant of record, it doesn’t process returns. The merchant’s usual policies and support channels apply.

Is it safe to submit payment details through ChatGPT?

Yes, the transaction is handled through Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP). ACP uses encrypted, limited-scope payment tokens so that only the specific merchant and transaction amount can use them. That means your card details aren’t shared openly or stored in insecure systems.

Which payment methods are supported?

In the U.S., Instant Checkout supports all major credit/debit card brands, and express payment options like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Stripe’s Link. It works across web, iOS, and Android platforms. (Source: OpenAI’s developer guide for Agentic Commerce)

Does enabling Instant Checkout improve a merchant’s ranking in ChatGPT results?

No. OpenAI emphasizes that the inclusion of Instant Checkout does not grant ranking preference. ChatGPT ranks products by relevance (price, availability, quality), not by which merchants support the instant purchase feature.

Can merchants outside Etsy or Shopify participate?

Yes. While the launch is starting with U.S. Etsy sellers and expanding to Shopify merchants, any business can apply to join the Instant Checkout ecosystem via the ACP integration. Merchants using other payment systems can map into the protocol using shared payment token APIs or delegated payments.

Which users can access Instant Checkout?

All Personal ChatGPT accounts (Free, Plus, and Pro) in the U.S. can use Instant Checkout for supported products. It’s not limited to paid subscribers.

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