Honda & QuantumScape's Solid State Battery Manufacturing

Japanese carmaker Honda has entered into a joint research agreement with QuantumScape Corporation aimed at advancing its battery platform. 

Solid-state batteries are set to rapidly improve the performance of electric vehicles (EV) in areas such as charging, energy, cost and safety, but have faced numerous technical and engineering challenges that have held the technology back from mass market adoption. 

The news suggests EVs are still a key part of Honda’s long-term plan. It follows Honda recording its first ever annual loss, which was partially related to its EV program. 

The joint agreement

The joint programme includes a multi-year plan focused on solid-state battery development and associated manufacturing processes.

Atsushi Ogawa, Chief Operating Officer, Research Center of Excellence at Honda R&D, says: “QuantumScape technology demonstrated compelling and unique advantages during our evaluation.

"We see potential for QuantumScape technology to add value across a range of applications, including automotive, and we are excited to move forward into the next phase of our partnership.”

The agreement follows Honda’s successful completion of a technology evaluation agreement with QuantumScape, which included an in-depth, hands-on technical study of its solid-state technology platform as well as competitive benchmarking across a range of standard technical tests.

What is a solid-state lithium-metal battery?

California headquartered QuantumScape is a developer of solid-state lithium-metal batteries. The company highlights on its website two differentiators between it and its competitors, namely an anodeless architecture and proprietary solid ceramic separator. 

A solid-state lithium-metal battery replaces the liquid electrolyte and polymer separator of a conventional battery with a solid-state separator. This upgrade allows the standard carbon or silicon anode to be replaced with a much more energy-dense lithium-metal anode.

According to the company, relative to a conventional lithium-ion battery, solid-state lithium-metal battery technology has the potential to increase the cell energy density, reduce charge time, prolong life, improve safety and lower costs for manufacturers.

Honda leading on battery tech

Dr. Siva Sivaram, CEO and President of QuantumScape, says: “Honda is a leading global automaker renowned for its engineering excellence and product quality across automotive and other applications worldwide, and its evaluation represents one of the most rigorous assessments of our technology to date.

“This agreement reflects the growing confidence in QuantumScape solid-state lithium-metal batteries to enable safer, higher-density energy storage.”

Honda is a leader in innovative battery technology, having entered a joint agreement to make all-solid-state batteries with Sumitomo Metal Mining earlier this year. 

Honda’s EV losses

Car companies are increasingly abandoning or rolling back EV plans, including Honda, which scrapped the Honda 0 Saloon and the AFEELA, a joint venture with Sony. 

The company has struggled with costs as a result of EV plans. 

Honda recorded an operating loss of JP¥414.3 (US$2.6bn) for financial year 2025/26, with the company citing EV related losses as well as tariff impacts as key concerns for the business. 

In the financial year 2025/2026, Honda recorded total EV-related losses of JP¥1.578tn (US$9.95bn), slightly shy of US$10bn.

The partnership with QuantumScape shows the Japanese carmaker is not backing away entirely from its belief in the electric future, even after abandoning its commitment to being a fully electric car company by 2040 and updating its strategy to be carbon neutral by 2050.