Redwood Materials
Category: AI in Climate / Energy
Battery recycling and critical materials company building a U.S. circular supply chain for lithium-ion batteries and deploying large-scale energy storage, including for AI data centers. Redwood Materials was founded in 2017. The company is led by JB Straubel. Based in Carson City, Nevada, USA. Total funding raised: $2.29B. Latest round: Series E. Key investors include Eclipse, Google, NVIDIA / NVentures, Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Capricorn Investment Group, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity Investments, Franklin Templeton, Amazon Climate Pledge Fund, Ford Motor Company, Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, OMERS.
- Founded
- 2017
- Headquarters
- Carson City, Nevada, USA
- Total funding
- $2.29B
Value proposition
Redwood recovers and refines critical battery materials (lithium, nickel, cobalt, copper, cathode active material) domestically at scale, and repurposes second-life EV batteries into modular energy storage systems, reducing US dependence on foreign mineral supply chains while powering the AI/data center energy boom.
Products and solutions
Battery recycling & materials recovery (Battery Bin consumer program), cathode active material (CAM) production, lithium/nickel/cobalt/copper refining, Redwood Energy — second-life EV battery energy storage systems for grid and data-center power.
Unique value
Only vertically integrated US player spanning battery collection/recycling, critical materials refining, and cathode material production, now extending into second-life battery energy storage specifically targeting AI data center power demand.
Target customer
EV and battery manufacturers (Panasonic, Toyota, VW/Audi, BMW, Ultium), data center operators and hyperscalers (Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA-affiliated), industrial/fleet operators (Caterpillar, Lime, Isuzu), and battery recyclers/consumers.
Industries served
Energy storage, critical materials/mining, EV/automotive supply chain, AI/data center infrastructure power, industrial equipment.
Technology advantage
Proprietary hydrometallurgical recycling process with >95% material recovery rates; two integrated US campuses (Nevada, South Carolina) plus SF R&D center; deep automotive OEM partnerships providing feedstock supply chain lock-in.
How they differentiate
Full vertical integration from recycling through refined critical materials and CAM production, plus a distinct pivot into energy storage systems (Redwood Energy) targeting AI data center power demand — competitors like Li-Cycle and Ascend Elements focus primarily on recycling/materials recovery only.
Main competitors
Li-Cycle, Ascend Elements, Ace Green Recycling / Princeton NuEnergy
Key partnerships
Panasonic, Toyota, Volkswagen/Audi, BMW, Ultium Cells, Caterpillar, Lime, Isuzu, Crusoe (AI data center energy partnership), U.S. Department of Energy (loan commitment)
Notable customers
Panasonic, Toyota, Volkswagen/Audi, BMW, Ultium Cells, Caterpillar, Lime, Isuzu
Major milestones
2017 founded by JB Straubel, 2019 JB leaves Tesla full-time, 2020 Panasonic recycling partnership, 2021 $700M raise, 2023 $1B+ Series D + DOE $2B loan commitment, 2024 Ultium/BMW partnerships, 2025 Redwood Energy launches, Caterpillar collaboration, $350M Series E first close, Jan 2026 Series E final close at $425M with Google/NVIDIA investment.
Growth metrics
~1,000 employees (reports range 800-1,200); targets 20 GWh of energy storage capacity by 2028; two US campuses (Nevada, South Carolina) plus SF R&D center; post-Series E valuation reported to top $6B.
Market positioning
Market leader in US battery recycling/critical materials at industrial scale, now expanding into grid-scale and AI-data-center energy storage as a second growth vector.
Geographic focus
United States-centric (Nevada and South Carolina campuses), with European expansion; competes globally against Li-Cycle (Canada/US) and Ascend Elements (US).
Patents and IP
Active patent portfolio (assignee Redwood Materials, Inc.): granted and pending US/EP filings covering battery collection/transport with fire suppression, second-life battery pack control systems (pack manager for multi-chemistry EV packs), electrodeposition rectifier mounting, and automated battery sorting; Greyb reports ~8 global filings with at least 1 grant; additional applications published 2025–2026.
About JB Straubel
Ex-Tesla CTO (Chief Technical Officer, 2004-2019), Tesla board member; BS/MS Energy Systems Engineering, Stanford University. Led Tesla's battery and powertrain engineering from founding through mass EV scale.
Latest news about Redwood Materials
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Official website: https://www.redwoodmaterials.com
