General Motors backs Peak Energy’s sodium-ion batteries for U.S. grid storage as China leads the market

General Motors is backing Peak Energy, a U.S. startup developing sodium-ion batteries for grid storage. The company aims to succeed where earlier American startups failed, while China has taken a commanding lead in the technology.

Sodium-ion chemistry could become a lower-cost alternative for stationary storage because it avoids some constraints tied to lithium supply chains. GM’s support suggests automakers are looking beyond EV batteries toward the broader energy storage market.