Waiting in line last weekend to be ferried from Silverstone circuit by a community of volunteer Tesla taxis, I had plenty of time to think about how far the electric vehicle industry has come.

I spent the weekend at the Fully Charged Live show, hoping to experience the cutting edge in electric cars, charging and renewable energy. What I didn’t expect was the sheer amount of enthusiasm I would be met with, from every single person I talked to. I’ve been party to this phenomenon before – the idea that every EV driver is passionate about their car – but having them all in one place, collectively fangirling over Robert Llewellyn, was something else entirely.

The buzz of the event first hit me at the keynote interview on Friday. Regrettably, I spent less time listening to the interview itself than I did paying attention to the audience. Everyone sitting near me was captivated – and that’s just those lucky enough to find a seat. Just from the opening ceremony of a weekend of events, there was excited chatter and genuine laughter from the crowd.

This electric atmosphere didn’t dissipate when the crowds filtered through to the rest of the event, either. Members of the public were engaged in energetic discussion with software developers, startup CEOs and Youtube stars at every turn. The smaller stage, ambitiously named the MegaTheatre, was home to a number of discussions about the future of the industry and where we are today. It was heartwarming to see the sheer enthusiasm from the audience.

The impression I was left with after the first day was that the EV industry is developing so rapidly that nobody can keep up. The collective excitement that this fosters about when the next technological bombshell is going to drop is tangible. To be involved in such an innovation driven sector is refreshing, and the kindness and curiosity of its end users makes it all the more rewarding.

The 10,000 strong event was a testament to the fact that electric cars are the future, but the atmosphere and the people at the event proved to me that they’re also very much the present.

• Peter Brock, Plug-N-Go Ltd.