A sodium-ion battery company unveiled its cell technology for a 12V starter battery built around the company’s sodium-ion cells. With UNIGRID’s new cell technology, an EV sodium-ion battery can last for over 5,000 cycles.

“With Na⁺ Fleet, OEMs will be able to directly integrate NCO sodium-ion cells into their own range of 12V Na⁺ packs for distribution,” the company says in a statement.

What is UNIGRID and What Can Its Battery Tech Do?

UNIGRID is a University of California, San Diego (UCSD) spin-off, founded by Darren Tan and Erik Wu. Their primary focus is on building advanced battery technology. Specifically, they want to develop reliable sodium-ion batteries that could one day replace lithium-ion batteries.

UNIGRID’s story begins with the doctoral research of Tan and Wu at UCSD. In 2021, the two founders took their work and built UNIGRID, spinning out of the university’s labs. In 2024, the company secured a significant $12 million in Series A funding to accelerate its work.

Now, UNIGRID’s 12V starter battery, built around the company’s NaCrO₂ (NCO) sodium-ion cells, aims to replace lead-acid starter batteries.

Sodium-Ion Starter Batteries

Sodium Starter Battery
Na⁺ Fleet; Photo: UNIGRID

“For more than 70 years, the 12V starter market has relied on lead-acid batteries — heavy units that require regular maintenance, suffer from high self-discharge rates and are replaced at least three to four times during a vehicle’s lifespan,” the company stated. “Lithium-based options address some of those limitations but bring their own challenges, including reliance on active battery management, poor performance in cold temperature and the potential for fire hazards in the vehicle’s engine bay.”

Unlike traditional lead-acid batteries, sodium-ion batteries have a smaller and lighter design. However, despite its small size, sodium-ion is efficient and has a longer operational lifespan.

“NCO sodium-ion available today beats lead-acid in almost all metrics relevant for SLI applications, including total cost,” said Tan. “Strategically, this is an attractive early entry market for sodium ion; it is a large, already existing market using an outdated technology that is primed for disruption.”

Na⁺ Fleet is designed for a broad range of vehicles and equipment that use standard 12V starter batteries. These include cars, pickup trucks, motorcycles, and even golf carts or forklifts.

Key Features of Na⁺ Fleet

  • Ultra-safe NaCrO₂ chemistry eliminates thermal-runaway risk.
  • A lead-acid-compatible voltage window (8–14.4V operating) enables passive balancing without a BMS, lowering costs.
  • 5,000+ usable cycles across hot or cold climates, 10x of comparable lead acid.
  • Low self-discharge removes the need for maintenance charging.
  • >2x of lead acid’s cranking amps between –40°C and 60°C.