CATL: Global battery supremacy

By Professor Mark J. Greeven Mark J. Greeven, Yunfei Feng and Professor Patrick Reinmoeller Patrick Reinmoeller

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) was founded in 1999 under the name ATL. Initially, it had no technology of its own, and the founder, Zeng Yuqun, traveled to the US and acquired a patent for a lithium-ion polymer (LiPo) battery from Bell Laboratories. Then, through a series of technological breakthroughs that came one after the other, CATL became the supplier of Apple, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla. On 29 July 2021, CATL unveiled its first generation of sodium-ion batteries, an important pivot away from lithium-based batteries. In addition to sodium-ion batteries, for many years CATL has been deeply involved in researching and developing solid-state batteries, which are deemed to be the most promising technology to improve energy density significantly. Through continuous technology innovation, CATL enjoyed a market value of roughly $203 billion by July 2021. This, according to The Economist, was greater than the combined value of lg Chem, Panasonic and BYD the world’s second-, third- and fourth-largest battery producers.

Learning Objective

In a field where technology is king, the primary success factor must be continuous technological innovation and breakthroughs
Win over your benchmark customer first
Government support is essential for technology innovation

Keywords	Battery Technology, Electric Vehicle, Innovation, Strategy, Technology, Technology Management
Settings	China CATL, Automobiles, Electric Vehicles 1999-2021
Type	Published Sources
Copyright	©IMD 2022
Language	English

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Reference: IMD-7-2302

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