Temasek backs US battery start-up Ionblox in Series B round

Ionblox, a California-based company developing next-generation lithium-ion battery technology, on Wednesday said it has increased its Series B funding to USD 32 million (EUR 29.8m) after a second close.

The firm raised capital from original investors Lilium, which develops an all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) jet, and Applied Ventures, as well as private equity firm Catalus Capital and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek.

Ionblox, which was previously called Zenlabs Energy, said it will use the funding to scale its technology, develop advanced high-power cells for electric aviation and prototype fast-charge cells for electric vehicles.

“The funding from this round will enable us to take an important step in our journey to scale our technology and set up our own cell manufacturing in the US and other key markets,” commented chief executive Sujeet Kumar.

Ionblox uses a silicon anode in the battery instead of typical anode materials such as graphite. It is currently producing large format pouch cells of up to 50 Ah on its pilot lines.

According to Lilium’s chief executive Yves Yemsi the Ionblox technology enables one of the highest performance cells for eVTOL aircraft.

Ionblox announced a USD-24-million Series B investment in October 2022.

(USD 1 = EUR 0.932)

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