Solid-state battery technology company Factorial Energy announced yesterday that it has entered into joint collaboration agreements with both Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis N.V., each of whom is also making a strategic investment in the company. Just a few days earlier, Factorial, Hyundai Motor Co., and Kia Corp. announced that they are partnering to test Factorial’s solid-state battery technology and its integration in Hyundai electric vehicles (EVs). That announcement was Woburn, MA-based Factorial’s first major strategic investment from a major automotive OEM group and deepens its existing research relationship with Hyundai.

“These partnerships will accelerate our ability to commercialize our core technology,” said Factorial Energy CEO Siyu Huang, Ph.D. “With our new partners we can develop batteries that not only enable safer and longer driving range vehicles, but that are also compatible with conventional lithium-ion battery manufacturing environments.”

The company’s breakthrough solid-state technology addresses key issues holding back widescale consumer adoption of electric vehicles: driving range and safety.

Mercedes-Benz is joining forces with Factorial to jointly develop next-generation battery technology with the aim of testing prototype cells as early as next year. The goal of the partnership is to start with the cell and extend development to include entire modules and integration into the vehicle battery.

“With Factorial as our new partner, we are taking research and development in the field of promising solid-state batteries to the next level,” said Markus Schäfer, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG and responsible for Daimler Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars COO. “With this cooperation, we combine Mercedes-Benz’s expertise in battery development and vehicle integration with the comprehensive know-how of our partner Factorial in the field of solid-state batteries.”

Mercedes-Benz aims to integrate the technology into a limited number of vehicles as part of a small series within the next five years. With its investment, Mercedes-Benz obtains the right to delegate a representative to Factorial’s Board of Directors.

“For Factorial Energy, it is a privilege to collaborate with Mercedes-Benz, which basically invented the automobile,” said Huang.

As Mercedes-Benz sees it, solid-state batteries are currently one of the most promising technologies in the field of electric mobility. It says that the “decisive difference” is the use of an electrolyte made of solid material instead of the commonly used liquid electrolyte. The electrolyte is needed to transport ions back and forth between the electrodes when charging and discharging the battery. Solid electrolytes enable a significantly optimized safety of the battery as well as the use of new types of anodes, such as lithium-metal anodes. These offer an almost doubled energy density compared to today’s Li-ion battery cells. As a result, they promise an increase in range while at the same time ensuring short charging times.

Stellantis announced during its EV Day program in July its target of having the first competitive solid-state battery technology introduced by 2026.

“Our investment in Factorial and other highly recognized battery partners boosts the speed and agility needed to provide cutting-edge technology for our electric vehicle portfolio,” said Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares. “Initiatives like these will yield a faster time to market and more cost-effective transition to solid-state technology.”

Under the Hyundai/Kia joint development agreement that includes a strategic investment, the companies will integrate Factorial technology at the cell, module, and system levels; perform vehicle-level integration; and co-develop specifications for manufacturing Factorial’s batteries.

“Our partnership with Hyundai is yet another validation of our solid-state battery technology, and we look forward to demonstrating its market readiness in Hyundai vehicles,” said Huang.

“The Hyundai CRADLE team has been impressed with Factorial’s management team, technology, and novel manufacturing approach, which could make the transition to solid-state seamless and cost-effective,” said Henry Chung, SVP and Head of CRADLE Silicon Valley.

Co-founded by Huang and Alex Yu, President, Factorial has invested heavily in solid-state battery research over the past 6 years. Its resulting process is electrode-agnostic and is said to yield the world’s first commercial-scale, balanced performance-profile solid-state cell.

In April, the company emerged from stealth to introduce what it says is the first 40-A·h solid-state battery cell for EVs and other applications.

“For electric vehicles to capture more than just 4% of global car sales, buyers need to see dramatic price and performance improvements in the underlying battery systems,” said Huang, at the time. “Factorial’s solid-state battery technology offers the performance, safety, scalability, and commercial readiness needed to move the needle of EV adoption. We are thrilled to be the first to reach the 40 A·h benchmark for a solid-state cell.”

Helping guide the battery-technology company are senior industry leaders with deep technical and automotive experience.

The Executive Chairman is Joe Taylor, the former Chairman and CEO of Panasonic Corporation of North America who played a key role in the development of the Tesla-Panasonic relationship, which resulted in Panasonic investing in the Tesla Gigafactory in Reno, NV. Also on the company’s Advisory Board are the Dieter Zetsche, former Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz; Mark Fields, former Ford Motor Co. CEO; and Harry Wilson, former senior advisor to the Obama Administration’s Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry.

Factorial’s technology is said to offer a high level of operational safety and extend driving range by 20 to 50%, addressing two key factors to broad consumer adoption. Its drop-in compatibility with existing lithium-ion battery manufacturing infrastructure reduces costs and the complexity of changing to different battery technology for auto manufacturers.

“Our batteries are unique because they achieve the broadest range of OEM performance requirements while offering superior energy density, safety, and scalability,” said Taylor. “Our technology can be easily integrated into existing lithium-ion battery manufacturing infrastructure—which makes Factorial an immediately viable partner for every automaker pursuing EVs.”

Factorial’s advances are based on FEST (Factorial Electrolyte System Technology), which leverages a proprietary solid electrolyte material that enables safe and reliable cell performance with high-voltage and high-capacity electrodes at room temperature. FEST is safer than conventional lithium-ion technology, replacing the combustible liquid electrolyte with a safer, more stable solid-state electrolyte that suppresses lithium dendrite formation on lithium-metal anodes.