Solid-state battery surge
March brought a flurry of solid-state claims — Mercedes-Benz patented what reporters call a “game-changing” solid-state EV battery promising faster charging, higher energy density and lower weight. (motorbiscuit.com) MG announced its “SolidCore” semi-solid cell will debut in the MG4 EV Urban later this year, touting faster charging, better cold-weather performance and improved safety, while researchers unveiled a new polymer design to boost ion flow — and Donut Lab faces scrutiny for lacking independent energy-density and cycle-life data with a Q1 2026 proof deadline. ( )
Mercedes’ newly published patent describes an ultra-thin, multi‑layer anode architecture aimed at enabling “anode‑free” lithium plating and addressing dead‑lithium formation during charging. (motorbiscuit.com) The filing is Mercedes‑Benz’s second solid‑state patent this year and its 18th overall, compared with Toyota’s tally of more than 2,200 solid‑state patents and Toyota’s stated mass‑production target for SSBs in 2027. (carbuzz.com) MG says its SolidCore “semi‑solid” cell will enter production in the MG4 EV Urban for Europe by late 2026 and that the cell offers faster charging, improved cold‑weather performance and enhanced safety versus its current lithium‑ion packs. (whichev.net) (carmagazine.co.uk) MG describes the SolidCore rollout as the first mass‑produced semi‑solid‑state cell for mainstream European vehicles and tied the launch to an expanded European engineering footprint, including a new centre in Germany. (theevreport.com) (whichev.net) Researchers studying polymeric ionic‑liquid block copolymers found self‑assembly “dead ends” that trap ions and reduce ionic conductivity by one to two orders of magnitude, and reported a redesigned block‑copolymer morphology that reopens ion‑transport pathways to boost conductivity. (phys.org) (interestingengineering.com) Finland’s VTT has published independent reports on Donut Lab cells that verify very fast charging rates but do not test the startup’s headline specs of 400 Wh/kg energy density or a 100,000‑cycle life, and Electrek notes Donut Lab’s Q1 proof deadline falls at the end of March 2026 (March 31, 2026). (electrek.co) (labnews.io)
