TDK, one of the main suppliers of batteries for Apple’s iPhones, will this year roll out an improved version of its most advanced product to help mobile devices keep up with the rising power demands of built-in artificial intelligence (AI).
The Tokyo-based company plans to start mass production of its third-generation silicon-anode cells from late summer, chief executive officer Noboru Saito said. Silicon batteries, which are more complex to manufacture but carry more energy than conventional ones, have already been embraced by most major Chinese phone makers and Saito sees further growth ahead.
“Our continued investment in R&D is one of our business’s strengths, and we plan to accelerate that momentum,” said the 58-year-old executive, who’s been with the company for over three decades.
Hong Kong-based subsidiary Amperex Technology, the leading provider of mobile batteries globally, first introduced lithium-ion cells with silicon anodes in 2023 after years of research and fine-tuning. Those had 5 per cent greater energy density than graphite-anode batteries, and the improvement has steadily risen to 15 per cent better capacity in the upcoming 2025 edition. That’s resulted in devices such as the recent Vivo X200 Pro, which is the same size and weight as phones that have 5,000 milliampere-hours of capacity but includes a 6,000mAh cell.
The potential of silicon batteries has also been recognised by TDK rivals LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI, both of which are developing such products for use in electric vehicles (EVs). TDK and ATL’s silicon anode provider, US-based Group14 Technologies, counts Porsche as a strategic investor and sees EVs as the next frontier for the technology after smartphones.
“Virtually all the automakers are looking at silicon batteries” because of their potentially much faster charging times, Group14 CEO Rick Luebbe said. Silicon car batteries could recharge in five to seven minutes where existing ones using graphite need 40 minutes or more, he added.
TDK is investing in capacity as well as continued research and development, Saito said. He sees the company’s advantage in its speed to mass production and ATL’s expertise in putting the various elements together. TDK is currently the only company capable of mass-producing silicon batteries, according to Toyo Securities analyst Hideki Yasuda, because of the complexity of assembling them at scale. That’s a big advantage for the company, but not for its customers.
“A component that only one company can make causes supply shortage concerns among clients, and that often blocks the wide adoption of that technology,” Yasuda cautioned.
While the silicon-anode segment of TDK’s business is still small, Saito is confident that customers will see value in the technology and growth will come “step by step”. BLOOMBERG
