Battery startups had opportunity to connect with investors and partner network
by Katie Liu – ChargeUp Accelerator kicked off its first-ever Investor Summit at the SUNY Global Center, bringing ten visionary battery companies, selected from hundreds, into one room. But before they began their pitches about how they’re working to attain a cleaner future, powered by better batteries, the summit began with remarks from NYSERDA’s Vice President of Innovation, Brandon Owens, honoring the industry’s present and looking into the future.
“The entrepreneurs and innovators in this audience are the ones who are actually going to get us to our destination. Without your ideas, your grit, your willingness to push through setbacks, this energy transition that we’re in the midst of will falter,” he spoke. “So thank you — thanks for the prototypes, for the late nights, the pivots, the perseverance.”
The Investor Summit capped off Climate Week NYC, which focused on clean energy and climate mitigation. More than 100 members of the battery and energy storage industry registered for ChargeUp’s summit, ready to hear pitches from the battery startups comprising the program’s first and second cohorts.
The event was hosted by the Binghamton University-led initiative New Energy New York, in collaboration with the Volta Foundation — the world’s largest network of battery professionals. ChargeUp Accelerator is the one and only program of its type in the country to specifically focus on supporting battery companies until they’re investment-ready.
“No other accelerator in the country can offer this level of sector-specific resources and geographic advantage,” said Bandhana Katoch, assistant vice president of Binghamton University’s Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Partnerships. “Our six-month hybrid accelerator delivers more than 200 hours of expert-led curriculum covering the due diligence and supply chain strategy designed for manufacturing, pricing and market entry.”
After remarks from both Katoch and Owens, the summit transitioned into an hour of company pitches and questions, hosted by Volta Foundation’s Director of Research and Insights Michael Liu. ChargeUp’s entrepreneurs each take their own approach to the betterment of batteries and sustainability, from targeting battery health diagnostics to improving the raw materials being put into cells in the first place. These companies include: Ateios Systems, Standard Potential, Fermi Energy, Amel Energy, Cellec Technologies, Coulomb Technology, Valgotech, vsNEW, LiBAMA Power and FastLion Energy.
“It’s very clear that the ChargeUp program has the right structure in getting founders to think about the right problems and address the issues that investors are looking at,” Liu said.
The Investor Summit was hosted with the goal of being mutually beneficial for both investors and companies, with a networking hour to conclude the event. Particularly in the startup world, getting this type of opportunity to meet face-to-face with potential investors is key, according to Timothy Hoffman, the program director of climate initiatives at Columbia Technology Ventures.
“Sometimes it’s the informal interactions over a glass that help people make deep connections and trust, in ways that may not be possible otherwise,” Hoffman said.
Hearing the companies pitch one after another also tipped CEOs like Shaun Westbrook off to future partnerships he might be interested in pursuing.
“I was definitely trying to take a look at some of the hot startups in the battery space, and was hoping to discover companies that were leaning toward the consumer market — which two of them, I did discover here,” said Westbrook, who is CEO of Janus, a portfolio company under venture capital firm SOSV focusing on incorporating technology like pet wearables into animal-human bonds.
While not all ChargeUp companies are at the same point, Westbrook added it was useful to speak with them to figure out who aligned best with his own timeline.
“I think it’s really hard nowadays, online, to find out which companies are working on what technology, especially in the battery space,” he said. “Having all of them in one place, at one event, and being able to meet them afterwards, is very beneficial for potential B2B.”
Providing this interface for investors and up-and-coming companies is especially important while navigating an industry that can, at times, isolate.
“One of the big problems in the battery industry is how siloed it can be. Programs like ChargeUp span things like materials, diagnostics and other use applications,” Liu said. Because of that diversity, bringing both ChargeUp cohorts together presented a cohesive opportunity for investors to hear ideas from all corners of the industry, Liu added, “not just from one part of the chain.”
Binghamton University Technology Transfer Director Jitendra “JJ” Jain held similar sentiments. He said events like the Investor Summit are critical in raising awareness on what programs like ChargeUp are about, while connecting various nodes of New York’s battery ecosystem.
“This entire space is contact sport, and there are lots of constituents and stakeholders. There’s universities, support units, other key players like NYSERDA, and the industry,” he said. “There are, of course, startup investors, and you’ve got to have some kind of forum where you connect all these stakeholders in one spot, so they can get a better sense of what’s going on — because they all have different roles to play in supporting the ecosystem and these startups.”
Next, ChargeUp will be wrapping up its second year with a company showcase at the end of Battery Week on Oct. 17, from 2 to 3:30 PM. This pitch showcase will be held at the SUNY Culinary and Events Center in downtown Binghamton, where anyone — from investors to interested community members — is invited to attend and hear how these entrepreneurs are creating a cleaner world for the next generation.
“You’re not simply making batteries,” remarked Owens at the end of his keynote address, encapsulating the spirit of the day and program. “You’re designing the backbone of our clean tech future.”