Why The Biggest Battery Company Is Betting On Lithium Air
684K views · Aug 18, 2026 · Science & Technology
Comments · 908
@UndecidedTechnology · 1 month ago (edited) · pinned
What're your thoughts on CATL betting on a lithium-air future? Subscribe to IEEE Spectrum Magazine and get 20% off: <a href="https://spectrum.ieee.org/undecided">https://spectrum.ieee.org/undecided</a> And check out @IEEE Spectrum on Youtube.<br><br>If you liked this, check out The Battery the US Government Forgot <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjKnDdsWoG8&list=PLnTSM-ORSgi7uzySCXq8VXhodHB5B5OiQ">https://youtu.be/jjKnDdsWoG8?list=PLnTSM-ORSgi7uzySCXq8VXhodHB5B5OiQ</a><br><br>Edit: we're aware there's a slight issue with the audio, we're taking a look at the cause and apologize for the inconvenience!
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@briceey3651 · 1 month ago
Would love to see a an annual summary video that recaps on all this battery tech and how far they've come to offering a commercial product.
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@Bakobiibizo · 1 month ago
something is wonky with your audio in this video
798
@tomholroyd7519 · 1 month ago
"Lie to me about pie and we're going to have a problem" 🤣
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@jonathantillman842 · 1 month ago
It is exciting to see serious engineering going on in the lab and NOT being overhyped at some tech convention. I think the serious commitment made by the US scientists and engineers and the Chinese CATL points to a real potential in the next years that could indeed be as impactful on battery engineering as the printing press was on book publishing. Thank you for keeping it real.
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@eggshellgoesgaming · 1 month ago
I dream of a world where every media publication is subjected to the same peer-review process as scientific publications.
9
@llamacowking · 1 month ago
Most impressive part of this video is the IEEE Spectrum sponsor spot, every engineer likes that.
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@jonathanlovelace521 · 1 month ago
It'll be funny if Lithium air works out while plain solid state never ends up being worth the squeeze.
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@alexcoldt489 · 1 month ago
At 5,000Wh/kg you're exceeding the efficiency of jet turbines. The fact that that's even theoretically feasible is incredible.
9
@patsummit131 · 1 month ago
I wish videos and articles would discuss other battery metrics such as WH/Liter, cell voltage, cell current discharge/charge rates, operating temperatures... All these metrics are needed to understand if the battery will be usable.
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@t0rg3 · 1 month ago
Finally an accumulator where you can determine the state of charge by weighing it.
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@CasusUniversum · 1 month ago (edited)
you also didn't calculate that ice engine blocks and support machinery and liquids are much heavier than electric motors. that's what you get for free for more batteries. The real parity is around 400-500 kwh/kg
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