Image: Cuberg
HorizonX, Boeing’s innovation team, announced this week it has invested in Cuberg, a Berkeley-based startup developing next-generation battery technology for aerospace applications. “Cuberg’s battery technology has some of the highest energy density we’ve seen in the marketplace, and its unique chemistries could prove to be a safe, stable solution for future electric air transportation,” saidSteve Nordlund, vice president of HorizonX. The funding from Boeing will enable the company to hire more staff and expand its research and development facilities, according to Cuberg CEORichard Wang. Those resources “will help customers integrate our batteries into their products, while also scaling up our technology to fully automated production,” Wang said. The company hopes to test a prototype later this year, according to CNBC.
Cuberg was founded in 2015. One attraction of its technology, according to TechCrunch, is that its manufacturing process is compatible with existing large-scale battery factories. That would mean a lot less upfront investment required to scale up manufacturing for the new batteries. The HorizonX Ventures portfolio was created last year. So far, the project has invested in autonomous systems technology, wearable-enabled technologies, augmented reality systems, hybrid-electric propulsion and artificial intelligence. The team also invested in Zunum Aero, based in Kirkland, Washington, which is pursuing the development of electric-powered aircraft.
