German automobile manufacturing giant Volkswagen recently announced that it has increased its stake in US-based solid state battery company QuantumScape.
The automaker has recently invested another $200mn in the Stanford University spinout startup to boost the development of solid-state battery technology that aims to increase the ranges of electric cars and shorten charging times.
“We are making technological progress with our partner QuantumScape. The additional investment will effectively strengthen and accelerate our joint development work”, said Thomas Schmall, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Group Components
Volkswagen further said that plans for a pilot plant were expected to be firmed up in the course of this year.
Volkswagen’s relationship with QuantumScape, which had early backing from Kleiner Perkins and Khosla Ventures, actually stretches back to 2012. The two companies formed a joint venture in 2018 to accelerate the development of solid-state battery technology and then produce them at commercial scale. Volkswagen had earlier made an initial investment of $100mn into QuantumScape in September 2018.
“Volkswagen is taking e-mobility to the mainstream. A strong position in the field of batteries is a decisive factor in this regard”, said Frank Blome, Head of the Battery Cell business, Volkswagen Group Components. “We are securing our global supply base with efficient producers, gradually building up manufacturing capacities and driving the development of cutting-edge solid-state battery technology. Our focus in this context is on long-term strategic partnerships.”
Solid-state batteries are seen as the most promising technology for the next-but-one generation of e-mobility. With the same size of a current battery pack, the solid-state battery could enable electrical ranges at the level of conventional drives. Moreover, charging time could be significantly shortened.
QuantumScape was founded by Jagdeep Singh in 2011 at Stanford University. Jagdeep Singh is currently also serving as the company Chief Executive Officer. The company seeks to change the paradigm in energy storage by developing a completely new class of electrical energy storage device. QuantumScape is backed by top VC firms including LightSpeed Ventures and Capricorn Investment Group. Technology is based on work originating from Stanford University.
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