Jagdeep Singh Has Built A Battery That's Safe, Lasts Longer, Charges Instantly

Electric cars are definitely the future. Not only are they cleaner, but also avoid several hassles that gasoline cars experience, including maintenance and breakdowns.

However, the one drawback electric cars are known for is battery stamina and charging speeds.

Reuters

Even the most expensive and top of the line electric cars suffer from this. And this is partial since current battery tech is not as advanced as we want it to be. However, now researchers at QuantumScape have developed a new battery tech that can offer affordable, long-range journeys in electric vehicles in just four years.

The batteries, (called Solid-state lithium metal batteries) with the new tech are able to offer better capacity compared to existing lithium-ion ones, recharge faster and even operate cooler. Moreover, the batteries also charge without degrading over time -- something lithium in batteries are infamous for.

One of the biggest changes in the team at QuantumScape have implemented, is the replacement of liquid in the lithium-ion batteries with a strip of metal that makes them safer and not making them prone to combustion.

In their testing, they¡¯ve seen the battery to charge a completely drained battery to 80 percent in around 15 minutes -- a third of what batteries today are capable of.

QuantumScape¡¯s CEO, Jagdeep Singh, said in a statement to Fortune, ¡°That¡¯s really our goal, to build a battery that could help EVs become more mainstream. The potential now exists for this technology to make its way into real cars on real roads within the next few years.¡±

Jagdeep Singh/ QuantumScape

While all this looks great, there is still some time for this tech to become mainstream as several challenges still exist, ¡°We¡¯d love it to be faster than that, but the reality is you can¡¯t. Where we are today is, we¡¯ve got the materials, we¡¯ve shown they work, and now we need a good team that knows what it¡¯s doing scaling up production and building factories.¡±

Bill Gates has been one of the initial investors and they¡¯re working with carmaker Volkswagen and the car company has also agreed to invest up to $300 million in the startup.