Media comment: Electric vehicles, battery tech and patenting | Tim Harris and Sian Edmonds for Current News

This article in Current News, by Tim Harris and Sian Edmonds, looks at IP patent trends in battery technology. These are a sign of an increasingly mature market for lithium ion batteries with fast growth in research into alternative lithium-based solid-state batteries.

As uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) increases significantly, solid-state battery technologies are a promising option to decarbonise transport without some of the drawbacks associated with "traditional" lithium-ion batteries.

It is also likely that we will see an increase in disputes concerning the patents associated with these innovations. This may be by companies asserting their patents against infringing EVs, competitors seeking to invalidate patent rights threatening their products, or else other parties needing to obtain judicial relief to clarify the position of their battery technology with respect to patents of concern.

Current News is a leading media title focused on the transition to a decarbonised, digitised and decentralised energy economy, including the technology needed to help achieve Net Zero.