Batteries & EVs
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Base Power Raises $1 Billion Series D at $13 Billion Valuation, Launches Base Core Home Battery
The Austin startup's new funding round and 39.2 kWh Base Core battery bet that backyard storage can ease grid strain from AI data centers.
Max Planck Study Finds 'Soft' Lithium Dendrites Still Fracture Solid Batteries' Ceramic Electrolyte Like a Waterjet Through Rock
A Nature study explains how mechanically soft lithium dendrites still crack the hard ceramic electrolyte inside solid-state batteries, causing short circuits.
ESS Tech Signs Letter of Intent With Juniper Energy for 500 MWh of Sodium-Ion Battery Storage Through 2032
ESS Tech and Juniper Energy signed a non-binding LOI to deploy 500+ MWh of sodium-ion storage, starting with an 80 MWh California project targeted for 2027.
GM to Develop Its Own Sodium-Ion Cell for Grid Storage, Taking a Stake in Peak Energy and Keeping Exclusive Manufacturing Rights
General Motors will design a sodium-ion cell at its Warren, Michigan battery labs and retain exclusive rights to manufacture it, while GM Ventures takes a strategic stake in partner Peak Energy.
PNNL Opens the First Prismatic Battery Cell Line at a US National Lab, Targeting Sodium-Ion and LFP Grid Storage
The DOE's Grid Storage Launchpad has commissioned the first prismatic battery cell production line at a US national laboratory, starting with sodium-ion and LFP chemistries.
IEA: Global Electric Car Sales Topped 20 Million in 2025 as China Supplied 60% of the World's EVs
The IEA's Global EV Outlook 2026 finds one in four new cars sold worldwide was electric in 2025, with China dominating production and exports even as US sales softened after the EV tax credit expired.
Tesla Abandons India Factory Plans After Nine Years of Failed Negotiations
India's Minister of Heavy Industries confirmed on May 19 that Tesla will not build a manufacturing facility in India, closing a decade-long saga defined by tariff standoffs and weak sales.
US Battery Storage Posts Its Strongest Q1 on Record as AI Demand and Gas Volatility Drive a 32 Percent Surge
The US installed 9.7 GWh of new battery storage in Q1 2026—a 32% year-over-year jump and the highest first quarter ever recorded—as data center expansion and global gas disruptions outweigh federal permitting headwinds.
Oxford Researchers Cut Lithium-Ion Battery Resistance by 40 Percent With a New Binder Visualization Technique
A patent-pending staining method developed at Oxford enables nanoscale imaging of battery binders, reducing internal ionic resistance by up to 40 percent and pointing toward faster-charging, longer-lasting EV batteries.
Ford launches Ford Energy with a DC block BESS targeting 20 GWh of US battery storage a year
Ford on May 11 announced Ford Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary backed by roughly $2 billion that will build a 20-foot containerized BESS at a repurposed Kentucky plant, with first customer deliveries in late 2027.
Volkswagen Opens ID. Polo Pre-Orders at 33,795 Euros, Promises a 25,000 Euro Base Trim Later in 2026
Volkswagen launched its ID. Polo entry-level EV on April 29 with pre-orders for the 155 kW Life trim starting at 33,795 euros, while a 25,000 euro base version is set to follow later this year.
CATL and HyperStrong Sign Record 60 GWh Sodium-Ion Deal, the Largest Commercial Test Yet of Lithium's Cheaper Alternative
The three-year agreement, equal to half of CATL's 2025 storage shipments, signals that sodium-ion has cleared its mass-production hurdles and is moving from pilot projects to grid-scale deployment.