The search for a better battery setup for our electric cars is in full swing. If we’re being honest, the battery technology used in 99% of the electric cars on the roads today is nothing new. It’s largely the same lithium-ion technology we’ve had since the 1980s. However, car makers are working extra hard and trying to find a better solution and start-ups in this field are doing the same. One of them, in which BMW recently announced a fresh investment, is Our Next Energy.

Based in Michigan, Our Next Energy (ONE) is an energy-storage solutions company that’s working on creating better cells that would eventually offer longer range and a reduced manufacturing cost for EVs. “Our Next Energy is working to fundamentally reinvent the battery while focusing on sustainability, safety and cost; three key factors which will help speed the development and adoption of battery electric vehicles,” said Baris Guzel, partner at BMW i Ventures after the aforementioned investment was announced.

“We are convinced that Our Next Energy has the potential to truly transform the space, and we could not be more excited to join their journey,” Guzel added. In fairness, ONE does have two proprietary technologies that help it make some bold claims. The first is called ‘Aries’ and it uses Lithium Iron Phosphate (IPE) chemistry in an advanced structural cell to pack architecture reaching very high cell to pack ratios and system level energy density.

This results in an increase in battery range and decrease in costs while eliminating nickel and cobalt based chemistries. The second, dubbed “Gemini,” uses ONE’s proprietary energy management system and chemistry in a dual battery range extender architecture. “BMW i Ventures has a proven track record of successful collaboration with startups with leading technologies to shape future mobility,” said Mujeeb Ijaz, CEO and Founder of Our Next Energy. “We are excited to collaborate with Baris and his team as we work to demonstrate our core technologies.” The funds raised by ONE will be used to scale production of its first products.