The carmaker has followed up a $100m investment two years ago with a pledge to provide up to $200m for the Stanford-originated solid-state battery developer.
Automotive manufacturer Volkswagen revealed yesterday that it is investing up to $200m in US-based solid-state battery developer and Stanford University spinout QuantumScape.
QuantumScape is developing solid-state batteries that would utilise solid electrodes and a solid electrolyte, in theory offering greater energy density than the lithium-ion batteries generally used for electric vehicles right now, which use liquid or polymer gel electrolytes.
The company was spun out of Stanford in 2010 and began collaborating with Volkswagen two years later, before the carmaker invested $100m in QuantumScape in mid-2018.
The 2018 investment was provided in connection with a partnership agreement that will involve the companies working together on the industrial-level manufacturing of solid-state batteries for Volkswagen vehicles, and they said this week they intend to establish a pilot facility soon.
Frank Blome, head of Volkswagen subsidiary Volkswagen Group Components’ battery cell business, said: “Volkswagen is taking e-mobility to the…