A123 Systems is like some sort of entrepreneurial Energizer bunny: it just keeps on marching through investment rounds and deals. In the latest news, the Watertown, MA, supplier of high-power lithium ion batteries announced today that it had received $30 million in new venture financing. The money will be used to scale up production capacity to meet growing demand for A123’s products, including fulfilling a big contract announced in August to co-develop the battery cell for General Motors’ Chevrolet Volt line of electric cars and other vehicles. The company will also grow its cordless power tool battery business, under a deal with Black & Decker.
The new funds come on top of $40 million the company raised in January; that was the biggest New England venture deal in the first half of this year. Since its 2001 founding, A123 has received more than $130 million in investment from the likes of General Electric, MIT, North Bridge Venture Partners, Procter and Gamble, Motorola, Qualcomm, Sequoia Capital, and YankeeTek, among others. A spokesman said that all of A123’s existing investors contributed to the new round, as well as two new ones: CMEA Ventures (which led the round) and Carruth Management.
The new funds should keep A123 energized for at least a little while longer.
Author: Robert Buderi
Bob is Xconomy's founder and chairman. He is one of the country's foremost journalists covering business and technology. As a noted author and magazine editor, he is a sought-after commentator on innovation and global competitiveness. Before taking his most recent position as a research fellow in MIT's Center for International Studies, Bob served as Editor in Chief of MIT's Technology Review, then a 10-times-a-year publication with a circulation of 315,000. Bob led the magazine to numerous editorial and design awards and oversaw its expansion into three foreign editions, electronic newsletters, and highly successful conferences. As BusinessWeek's technology editor, he shared in the 1992 National Magazine Award for The Quality Imperative.
Bob is the author of four books about technology and innovation. Naval Innovation for the 21st Century (2013) is a post-Cold War account of the Office of Naval Research. Guanxi (2006) focuses on Microsoft's Beijing research lab as a metaphor for global competitiveness. Engines of Tomorrow (2000) describes the evolution of corporate research. The Invention That Changed the World (1996) covered a secret lab at MIT during WWII. Bob served on the Council on Competitiveness-sponsored National Innovation Initiative and is an advisor to the Draper Prize Nominating Committee. He has been a regular guest of CNBC's Strategy Session and has spoken about innovation at many venues, including the Business Council, Amazon, eBay, Google, IBM, and Microsoft.
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