2023 Fire Awards Blazer winners named
We began with 50 companies that are changing Chicago's tech scene for the better.
Those ventures, this year's Fire Awards honorees, collectively have raised millions of dollars, expanded their portfolios, launched venture funds and received recognition across the tech space.
Now it's time to reveal the winners of this year's Blazer awards, the ventures in each of the five Fire Awards categories truly shaping Chicago tech this year.
CompanyWeek: Manufacturing in IL - NanoGraf Corporation
President Kurt "Chip" Breitenkamp sees a dual business model of manufacturing silicon-based battery materials and the cells themselves as a catalyst for long-term growth.
NanoGraf Wins Chicago Inno’s Fire Award
Among the highlights in the past year for NanoGraf, the Chicago startup that's building longer-lasting and higher-power lithium-ion batteries, is securing both an oversubscribed $65 million Series B and multiple Department of Defense contracts, and developing a new 17,000-square-foot facility in Fulton Market.
Lithium-Ion Battery Breakthroughs
NanoGraf Corporation has developed a novel high-energy density Si-based anode material that has the long-term potential to replace graphitic-based anodes in lithium-ion batteries for a range of applications, from consumer electronics to electric vehicles.
The EV Battery Wish List - Which automakers most want what in their ideal electric powertrain?
Connor Hund says NanoGraf aims to onshore production of its silicon-anode material at a new Chicago facility beginning in Q2 this year. The company, whose backers include the Department of Defense, claims to have created the most energy-dense 18650 cylindrical cell yet, at 3.8 amp-hours. The technology key is a pre-lithiated core that allows an anode silicon percentage as high as 25 percent, versus cells that typically top out at 5-to-7 percent silicon.
How Will NanoGraf’s Technology Change the Lithium-Ion Battery Landscape?
AZoM talks with Francis Wang, CEO of NanoGraf, to discuss their new lithium-ion battery technology and the onshoring of production in the Midwest.
Battery Tech Gets Another Boost With $65 Million Startup Bet
NanoGraf, a lithium-battery startup, has raised $65 million to help it build up its Chicago production facilities, joining a wave of investment that has poured into US battery manufacturers.
Volta Energy Technologies and CC Industries led the round, which brings the total amount raised by NanoGraf to about $100 million, the company plans to announce Tuesday.
How NanoGraf is commercializing the “world’s most energy-dense” 18650 battery cell with stable silicon oxide
Q&A with NanoGraf COO Connor Hund
Graphite, a pure form of carbon, is a critical material for battery anodes. Graphite’s physical structure allows it to store lithium ions, which merrily migrate to the anode when the battery is charged. Unlike cathodes, which can be composed of various combinations of chemicals (cobalt, nickel, manganese, lithium, iron, phosphorus et al), all current anodes used in EV batteries are composed mainly of graphite.
Crown family part of $65 million investment in battery startup
Battery-technology startup NanoGraf has raised $65 million to ramp up production at a West Side factory that will open later this year. Warrenville-based Volta Energy Technologies and CC Industries, the Crown family's holding company, led the investment. TechNexus and five other investors also joined the round, with existing backers, including Hyde Park Angels and Evergreen Climate Innovations.
Silicon anode battery companies get a major boost
Start-ups hoping to commercialize silicon materials for battery anodes raised nearly half a billion dollars in the final quarter of 2022. The money is intended to help them build factories and incorporate their materials into mass-market electric vehicles in the next few years.
ENERGI TALKS • EPISODE 104 - Rush is on to create North American EV battery supply chain
WHAT IS ENERGI TALKS?
Journalist Markham Hislop interviews leading energy experts from around the world about the energy transition and climate change.
EPISODE DETAILS
Markham interviews Connor Hund, chief operating officer at NanoGraf, an advanced battery material company located in Chicago, Illinois.
NanoGraf to launch US’s first large-volume silicon oxide factory
Chicago-headquartered NanoGraf Technologies, which claims it has enabled the world’s most energy dense 18650 lithium-ion cell, today announced that it will open the first large-volume silicon oxide factory in the United States. At peak production, NanoGraf will produce 35 tons per year.
NanoGraf wins government contract to build better batteries in the West Loop
NanoGraf Corp. has been awarded a contract from the U.S. Government to develop what will be the first large-volume manufacturing facility in the U.S. for silicon anode, a key component in batteries, including those that power electric vehicles.
Advanced Battery Technologies Will Help Transform Our Energy Economy
Next-gen battery tech is expected to change the economics of EVs, grid-scale renewable power, and other energy-intensive applications. Learn about what's inside the cells that will be coming to market over the next decade.
NanoGraf Has the World’s Most Energy-Dense Li-ion BatteryImage courtesy of NanoGraf
NanoGraf CEO Francis Wang explains the silicon-anode advantages that made it possible and its implications for the US military and others.
Can battery recycling help end US reliance on China?
“If you told me this is a 10-year play, I would say, yeah, that makes total sense,” Chip Breitenkamp, president of battery materials company NanoGraf, told TechCrunch. “I think 2024, 2025 is really aggressive for what they’re trying to do and the stipulations they put on the tax credit.”
Recycling electric car batteries is the next big space to watch as the first wave of electric and hybrid vehicles begins to retire from the streets.
“I’m a huge bull on recycling,” Breitenkamp said.
NanoGraf featured in Insider’s article featuring 17 startup companies
Automakers are betting on range and performance to win the
electric vehicle wars. These 17 battery startups could reap the
rewards by delivering an energy breakthrough.
The Other Electric Vehicle: E-Bikes Gain Ground for Americans Avoiding Gas Cars
Our CEO, Francis Wang, talked to Wall Street Journal technology reporter Christopher Mims last week about battery market supply chain challenges (including the graphite shortage), and their impact on the “other electric vehicle” – E-bikes. We were excited to see his comments run in this weekend’s edition of the WSJ.
Are non-lithium batteries the EV power supply of the future?
NanoGraf Corporation shares its insights on the lithium shortage and the prospects for non-lithium alternatives.
NanoGraf CEO Talks Batteries & the EV Boom
Dr. Francis Wang, CEO of battery material startup NanoGraf Corp., shared his thoughts about the electric vehicle market and what battery technologies can lead the way.