EV

Solid Capri Suns for Cars

The mobility reverse mergers roll on. 

Yesterday, battery maker QuantumScape said it would go public by merging with Kesington, a SPAC. When the deal closes (exp. Q4 2020), QuantumScape will be valued at $3.3 billion. The decade-old Stanford spinout is working on a deep tech problem: solid-state batteries. 

Explain it like I’m five 

Lithium-ion batteries, the Capri Suns for today’s EVs, have liquid electrolytes between the positive and negative sides. Lithium-metal batteries have...drum roll...solid electrolytes sitting in between. 

Solid > liquid for a number of reasons, QuantumScape founder and CEO Jagdeep Singh told me. I’ll highlight three.

• Energy density: Solid-state batteries are more energy-dense, meaning they can have more capacity and could unlock 50-100% more range for EVs.
• Charge time: On average, EVs take hours to charge. Singh says QuantumScape's battery can recharge to 80% capacity in only 15 minutes. 
• Safety: Lithium-ion batteries are prone to overheating and combustion. Singh says solid-state batteries are nonflammable and noncombustible. 

“The way we look at it, a lot of the science risk is behind us,” Singh said. And the "biggest car company is basically saying they can't wait to put these in their cars by 2025."

Biggest carmaker by production, not market cap, that is 

Volkswagen has invested $300 million in QuantumScape, with two-thirds of that coming this year. VW has already tested QuantumScape’s R&D batteries and the two companies are operating a joint manufacturing venture. 

Bill Gates is a double-dipping investor in the company, having backed QuantumScape personally and through Breakthrough Energy Ventures. “When we first met with him, I went in thinking: ‘What does a software guy know about chemistry?’ I was blown away by the questions he asked,” Singh said. “He really is motivated by climate, clean energy. He sees that you can’t really address the emissions problem without addressing transportation.” 

Big picture: QuantumScape is still pre-revenue, but EVs are riding high in public markets. Singh said QuantumScape’s post-SPAC-merger war chest of $1 billion+ will let it scale production and put batteries in cars. 

+ Feeling déjà vu? Emerging Tech Brew has also covered recent lidar and EV SPACs.

PRIVACY

Data2Go

If I had a dollar for every time I heard “I only still have Facebook because of my photos,” I could probably treat our entire editorial team to coffee. 

Now my hypothetical coffee fund might dry up: In June, FB’s entire user base got access to its data portability tool, which allows users to directly transfer their photos and videos to Google Photos. 

What’s new: Yesterday, FB announced a significant expansion of the tool. Users can now move their memories over to two additional services: Dropbox and Koofr. (If you’re interested, here’s a step-by-step.) 

Policy recap: Data portability is a key tenet of both the EU’s GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act.

• It aims to boost both competition and innovation (think: algorithms that sort and categorize photos more accurately) + give consumers more choice. 

The end game: With a move like this, FB is likely hoping to appeal to regulators on both sides of the pond. Not only is data portability a priority for the EU, but stateside, the expansion could help dial back antitrust concerns a wee bit. 

• Data portability is also on Big Tech’s to-do list: FB’s tool is based on code from the Data Transfer Project, an open source collaboration between FB, Apple, Google, Microsoft and Twitter. 

SPONSORED BY GRAZE

Cuttin’ It Up

Fog obscures the dance floor. 

A series of unknown beeps and boops sound from behind the haze, and just as the music hits a crescendo...a glistening, green figure emerges.

Graze—the world’s first fully autonomous commercial lawn mower—begins dancing...The Robot. 

The amassed leaders of the landscape industry faint left and right as Graze glides across the room, cutting grass, busting moves, and harnessing electric and solar power to disrupt a $100 billion dollar landscaping industry.

Every human in the club beeps and boops in a ridiculous attempt to mimic the robotic dance moves.

And as Graze motors toward the doorway, it turns back to say in its robotic voice, “Must im-prove marg-ins. Mark-et is hy-per com-pet-it-ive.”

The September 18th deadline to invest looms, and Graze’s departing words echo:

“In-vest in me to-day.”

HARDWARE

All the Emerging Chips

Chipmakers held court this week, announcing their newest product lines. Here’s what you missed.  

Tuesday

Nvidia unveiled a set of graphics cards with huge performance and power efficiency boosts. These GPUs will come in handy for video gamers, yes, but they’ll also be key for AI developers. 

• The company has also created a playable physics game with stunning graphics straight from the uncanny valley. 

Wednesday 

Intel updated its logo to evoke more chic startup vibes. It also revealed its 11th Gen Tiger Lake processors, which will power lotsa laptops. Intel has been humbled by major manufacturing setbacks this year, so it’s hoping to make up some ground with Tiger Lake—which offers speed, graphics, and onboard AI engine boosts. 

Thursday

Qualcomm is a leading chipmaker for all manner of 5G-ready devices. It’s hoping to make “5G for everyone,” with the release of budget phone chipsets slated for early next year. Soon, most new mobile phones will have the option to connect to at least some level of 5G (though that doesn’t mean it will work unless there’s a network). 

Zoom out: AMD is also on a hot streak, capitalizing on Intel’s missteps. Its stock hit all time highs earlier this week.

BITS & BYTES

Stat: Neural Pocket, a Tokyo-based AI startup, has $2.9 million in revenue. It IPO’d last week. Shares jumped 466%. Now, Neural Pocket is worth over $1 billion. 

Quote: “Every possible positive scenario is priced into the bull case, and we're ignoring the bear cases around market risk, macro risk, what ends up happening with China."—Ex-Twitter CEO Dick Costolo told CNBC that our current epoch feels slightly reminiscent of the dot-com bubble. 

See: Apple has a great new ad touting the iPhone’s privacy. For Apple, privacy is both a human right and marketing shtick.

SPONSORED BY VETTERY

It’s still a good deed if you get $2,000 for doing it. If you know someone looking for a job (especially if they’re in tech or sales), refer them to Vettery and you could get a nice payday yourself. Why Vettery? It’s the tech-forward career site that’s free for job seekers, and can connect them with the best of the best (like hot startups and Fortune 500 companies). Get all the info here.

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Verizon spent $1.9 billion in the Federal Communications Commission’s 5G spectrum auction this week. 
• The Interior Department grounded DJI drones due to security risks. In an internal memo seen by the FT, the agency said that decision may have compounded its difficulties fighting wildfires. 
• Indian PM Narendra Modi’s personal Twitter was hacked this week. 
• Investors have written down the value of AR startup Magic Leap to $450 million, from a high of $6.7 billion, The Information reports. 
• An appeals court ruled that the NSA’s bulk collection program was illegal. 
• Facebook has launched forwarding limits to five users, in an effort to mitigate the spread of misinformation.
• Zug, a Swiss canton, will take cryptocurrency tax payments next year.

GOING PHISHING

Three of the following news stories are true, and one...I made up. Can you spot the odd one out?

1. A startup building low-code tools for pre-K students raised $20 million. 
2. SoftBank is putting together a team to buy TikTok’s Indian app. 
3. A drone dropped bags of marijuana in the main square of Tel Aviv, Israel. 
4. AI beat human pilots in a simulated dogfight.

TECH THINGAMABOBS

For tracking robocars: The U.S. National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration has released its automated-autonomous test vehicle tracking tool. This is a non-exhaustive look at where activity is happening, but it’s neat to geographically visualize everything. 

For opportunity costs: Justin Gage of Technically breaks down how he built a minimum viable alternative to newsletter service Substack...and whether it was worth his time. 

For weekend long reads: You all know we pubbed our AI guide recently. But don’t forget our 5G guide from a few months back, either.

ICYMI

Catch up on the top Emerging Tech Brew stories from the past few editions: 

• Prime Air gets air carrier certification
• IBM brings new tech to U.S. Open
• Neuralink shares second research update

GOING PHISHING ANSWER

There isn't a startup building low-code tools for pre-K students that raised $20 million.