Charging speed remains a significant hurdle to overcome in the mass market adoption of passenger and commercial electric vehicles (EVs). According to specialists, rapid charging under traditional electrochemistry is still inherently unpredictable, often dangerously damaging cells and next-generation technologies such as solid-state electrolytes have repeatedly fallen short of deployment targets.

In that context, Gaussion, a University College London (UCL) spinoff, has raised a €10.9 million Series A round led by Autotech Ventures and supported by existing investors BGF and UCL Technology Fund, managed by AlbionVC in collaboration with UCL Business.

Gaussian has developed a solution that radically enhances battery performance using an external magnetic field during charge and discharge cycles to enable rapid charging by steering ions within existing battery cells. The magnetic field also lowers cell degradation, extending battery life.

The infusion of capital will enable Gaussion’s market entry which includes producing and selling its products and potentially licensing its technology for other applications.

“In many applications, we are observing that efforts to rapidly electrify are delayed or blocked due to the cost of raising the ceiling of battery performance,” said Tom Heenan, Gaussion CEO and co-founder.  “Whereas magnetic enhancement could provide step-change improvements across all chemistries, formats and applications, affordably unlocking electrification without compromising on cost or performance.”

“Gaussion’s approach aims to expand the solution space by introducing a new variable, rather than displacing or replacing existing technologies,” said Alexei Andreev, co-founder and managing director of Autotech Ventures. “They leverage the advancements of current battery cell giants and apply an external magnetic field to enhance the performance of established battery technologies without changing their core components. We see tremendous opportunities in a variety of markets.”

Gaussion’s capital raise comes at a time when vehicle owner sentiment about EVs has reached a tipping point. EV buyers are demanding the same convenience of ICE vehicles, including fast “refueling,” and automakers are desperate for new solutions. The current raise follows a seed raise of £2.85 million led by BGF and UCL Technology Fund (UCLTF) in 2022.

With a global portfolio of patents and patent applications, Gaussion aims to revolutionise the battery industry, offering a viable and scalable solution to meet the growing demand for more efficient and powerful energy storage systems. This innovation holds promise for a wide range of applications, including transportation electrification, construction equipment, mining operations, residential energy storage, and utility-scale energy storage for load and phase balancing.

Dennis Atkinson, investor at BGF, commented: “Gaussion is an innovative business that has developed a unique solution to one of the most pressing issues in the EV battery space. The strong progress so far, led by an exceptional team, highlights the potential of their technology and we are excited to have Autotech now join the journey.”

David Grimm, Partner UCL Technology Fund, added, “Slow charging speed and battery degradation are currently limiting the wide-scale adoption of electric vehicles and the broader energy transition. Dr. Tom Heenan and Dr. Chun Tan, co-founders of Gaussion, have managed to solve this problem by building an innovative solution from their university labs into a scaling company. Gaussion’s commercial application taps into a huge market need and we look forward to continuing to support them on their journey.”