Photo: Tesla
During the third quarter earnings call, Tesla announced to investors that it's making progress with the 4680 cell production at Giga Texas. However, new information shows that the lead inventor of the dry electrode coating process has left the company for a small startup.
During the 2020 Battery Day, Tesla introduced the revolutionary 4680 battery cells to the public. According to the presentation, the new cells were not only bigger but also more energy-dense thanks to their silicone anode technology. They were also supposed to be cheaper to produce due to a groundbreaking dry electrode coating manufacturing process. The latter was nabbed with the acquisition of Maxwell, a supercapacitor company that pioneered dry electrode research.
If you're unfamiliar, dry battery electrode (DBE) coating reduces manufacturing time tremendously, with significant cost benefits. However, the revolutionary process proved challenging to master and bogged down Tesla's battery efforts. And because Elon Musk is a stubborn individual, it also bogged down other battery companies, including Panasonic, as Tesla was adamant that the 4680 cells must be used in future models.
Tesla later sold Maxwell but kept the intellectual property associated with dry electrode coating and some of the people who worked on the technology. Among them was Hieu Duong, one of the lead inventors of the DBE process. Duong acted as Director of Electrode Engineering at Tesla and was widely recognized as one of the world's leading experts in dry battery electrode (DBE) manufacturing technology.
It's safe to assume that Duong has led Tesla's efforts in advancing DBE technology. During the third-quarter earnings call, Tesla confirmed that its 4680 cells, which were supposed to use the novel manufacturing process, are ramping up production at Giga Texas. The cell production has increased by 40% quarter over quarter, while the scrap from the 4680 production line is also down by 40% quarter over quarter.
The current 4680 cells produced at Giga Texas are of the second generation, with 10% higher energy density than those used for Model Y. They are dubbed "Cybercells" as they are mainly destined for Cybertruck production. Giga Texas operates four 4680 cell production lines as part of the "Phase 1" manufacturing facility. Phase 2 is also under construction, adding four more 4680 cell production lines to Giga Texas.
Still, what puzzled battery experts is that Tesla's 4680 cells still don't use the technological advancement introduced in 2020 during Battery Day. The silicon anode technology is not present on current 4680 cells, and there's still no proof that Tesla uses DBE in production. The efficient manufacturing process is now in jeopardy, as its lead inventor, Hieu Duong, has left Tesla to join AM Batteries, a small startup that aims to advance this technology.
Huong's departure was a surprising move, considering that AM Batteries has basically no revenue. The startup claims its dry electrode coating process is more advanced (paywall) than Tesla's. The startup is now in the process of scaling the technology to manufacturing. According to Stev LeVine from The Information, AM Batteries' method is cheaper, simpler, and can be manufactured faster than Tesla's tech.
If you're unfamiliar, dry battery electrode (DBE) coating reduces manufacturing time tremendously, with significant cost benefits. However, the revolutionary process proved challenging to master and bogged down Tesla's battery efforts. And because Elon Musk is a stubborn individual, it also bogged down other battery companies, including Panasonic, as Tesla was adamant that the 4680 cells must be used in future models.
Tesla later sold Maxwell but kept the intellectual property associated with dry electrode coating and some of the people who worked on the technology. Among them was Hieu Duong, one of the lead inventors of the DBE process. Duong acted as Director of Electrode Engineering at Tesla and was widely recognized as one of the world's leading experts in dry battery electrode (DBE) manufacturing technology.
It's safe to assume that Duong has led Tesla's efforts in advancing DBE technology. During the third-quarter earnings call, Tesla confirmed that its 4680 cells, which were supposed to use the novel manufacturing process, are ramping up production at Giga Texas. The cell production has increased by 40% quarter over quarter, while the scrap from the 4680 production line is also down by 40% quarter over quarter.
The current 4680 cells produced at Giga Texas are of the second generation, with 10% higher energy density than those used for Model Y. They are dubbed "Cybercells" as they are mainly destined for Cybertruck production. Giga Texas operates four 4680 cell production lines as part of the "Phase 1" manufacturing facility. Phase 2 is also under construction, adding four more 4680 cell production lines to Giga Texas.
Still, what puzzled battery experts is that Tesla's 4680 cells still don't use the technological advancement introduced in 2020 during Battery Day. The silicon anode technology is not present on current 4680 cells, and there's still no proof that Tesla uses DBE in production. The efficient manufacturing process is now in jeopardy, as its lead inventor, Hieu Duong, has left Tesla to join AM Batteries, a small startup that aims to advance this technology.
Huong's departure was a surprising move, considering that AM Batteries has basically no revenue. The startup claims its dry electrode coating process is more advanced (paywall) than Tesla's. The startup is now in the process of scaling the technology to manufacturing. According to Stev LeVine from The Information, AM Batteries' method is cheaper, simpler, and can be manufactured faster than Tesla's tech.
Duong told me that AM's method is cheaper, simpler and can be manufactured faster than Tesla's approach. 3/4
— Steve LeVine (@stevelevine) October 19, 2023
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