Venture investors are charged up about how to power this generation—and the next one—of electric vehicles. Venture funding for EV battery-related technology surged last year, and 2022 seems ready to pick up where it left off.

In 2021, EV battery startups—both hardware and software companies—raised more than $3.6 billion, according to Crunchbase data. Even subtracting the more than $3 billion raised by Chinese battery cell manufacturing giant Svolt, the remaining total is nearly triple the $174.7 million raised in 2020, according to Crunchbase.

What also is worth noting is how deal flow has increased, as the ecosystem around EV batteries, such as battery design and charging technologies, has grown. While previous years saw only about a dozen deals each year, 2021 more than doubled that average number.

Some of the largest deals—aside from Svolt’s rounds—in the space last year include:

Woburn, Massachusetts-based SES, which has developed a hybrid lithium metal battery, closed a $139 million Series D led by General Motors;
Louisville, Colorado-based solid-state battery-maker Solid Power raised a $130 million Series B led by the Ford Motor Co., BMW Group and Volta Energy Technologies. The company went public via a SPAC late last year; and
Singapore-based charging infrastructure provider Oyika closed a $100 million venture round.
The new year also has started strong, with three deals raising almost $290 million, including Woburn-based battery-maker Factorial Energy raising $200 million as part of a Series D round led by Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis.

Read more: Venture Funding Powers Up For EV Battery Startups