BMW i Ventures has invested in Michigan-based battery startup Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE) as part of a $25-million Series A capital raise led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The round was also joined by Assembly Ventures, Flex and Volta Energy Technologies. ONE is working to develop longer range, lower cost batteries for electric vehicles.

ONE has demonstrated two proprietary technologies. The first, called “Aries”, uses Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistry in an advanced structural cell-to-pack architecture reaching very high cell to pack ratios and system level energy density. This results in an increase in battery range and decrease in costs while eliminating nickel and cobalt based chemistries.

Aries will go into production at the end of 2022 with an energy density of 287 Wh/L at a system level. The Aries battery pack will have the highest known cell to pack ratio of 76%.

The Our Next Energy (ONE) Aries battery pack will use Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistry in a Structural Cell to Pack architecture, increasing range and reducing cost while eliminating nickel- and-cobalt supply chain and safety concerns.

The second, dubbed “Gemini,” uses ONE’s proprietary energy management system and chemistry in a dual battery range extender architecture. This approach yields 450 Wh/L at a system level, further improving range and cost beyond the Aries platform. To quantify the capabilities of the Gemini architecture, ONE calculates that this battery system will allow electric vehicles to travel more than 750 miles on a single charge.

Our Next Energy is working to fundamentally reinvent the battery while focusing on sustainability, safety and cost; three key factors which will help speed the development and adoption of battery electric vehicles. We are convinced that Our Next Energy has the potential to truly transform the space, and we could not be more excited to join their journey.

—Baris Guzel, partner at BMW i Ventures

Our Next Energy will use the investment to scale production of its first products.