That question led to Basis, the smart panel developed by Julyan (Julz) Collett and Danny Purcell. And while the origin story spans five years, dozens of prototypes and a fair bit of stubborn persistence (you can read that full story here), this article is about what Basis does now… and why specifiers, sparkies and homeowners are paying attention.
Insights that turn into action
Electricity isn’t getting cheaper. But smarter use of it can change everything.
At its core, the Basis panel is designed to make your home work more efficiently. It gives you real-time insights into exactly where and when you’re using power - not just overall, but down to individual circuits. That means you can spot what’s driving your bill, and use automation to reduce it.
"In my own home, just changing how we heat water will save over $1,500 a year," says Danny.
Those savings come from small, smart changes, like setting your hot water cylinder to charge when electricity is cheapest, or automating heavy loads to run outside of peak periods.
Think of it like having Power Switch in your pocket but more hands-on. The Basis panel constantly scans the market to help identify the best electricity plan for your usage, then lets you align your habits to optimise it.
Smarter control, bigger savings
The Basis Home App is the key. It turns your panel into a live dashboard of your home’s energy use, complete with control over circuits, notifications and routines you can set once and forget.
Got four kids who love hot showers? So does Danny. That’s why his own home became a test case for the platform. In just eight days, they identified how simple changes could drastically reduce energy spend.
"I was surprised how inefficient I’d been," he says. "But the tech just shows you... and then helps you fix it."
At a minimum, most households can expect to save 10% on their power bill. For many, it’s a lot more.

Safety, reimagined
While most smart home tech focuses on convenience, Basis puts safety at the centre.
The panel offers what Danny calls "the world’s most advanced residential electrical safety system" - with built-in protection against arc faults, which cause up to 80% of electrical fires but typically go undetected.
It also helps reduce risk from overloading or forgotten appliances. FOLO, the fear of leaving on, is real. Hair straightener? Iron? Heater? Check your app. And if you’re out of the house, just tap to switch that circuit off remotely.
One feature, designed especially for families, is better electric shock protection. Daycares and schools are legally required to meet a higher standard - because children are more vulnerable to electric shock than adults. Until now, that level of protection hasn’t been available in New Zealand homes. Basis makes it possible.

Designed to work for you (not the other way around)
Julz and Danny knew that for this to succeed, it couldn’t just be smart..it had to be seamless.
That meant developing a system that sparkies could install without hassle, and homeowners could use without a steep learning curve. It also meant rethinking distribution, cost and how people engage with power.
"We didn’t want to build another gadget," says Julz. "We wanted to make something foundational."
With every Basis panel installed, homes become safer, more efficient and more connected to the way power works today. It’s not just a smart switchboard. It’s a smarter home platform that pays for itself in as little as two years.

One panel. Real impact.
From live insights to proactive safety, Basis is packed with features that have traditionally been out of reach for everyday homes — either too expensive, too complex, or simply unavailable.
Now, all that capability is built into one sleek panel. Now, they’re accessible for everyday homes. Helping families save, sparkies install smarter, and the grid get a little more future-fit.
See it in action and meet the founders behind it in the full video series.