To ensure its cars remain competitive against rival products from Tesla and Ford, Kia wants to move over to Generation 4 and Generation 5 battery technology as soon as possible. The Kia EV9 is already equipped with Gen4 battery technology, which is likely the reason behind its impressive range figures.
Song also announced that Kia is moving solid-state battery development in-house. This might be a hint that Generation 5 battery tech will be solid-state, which will help Kia achieve its lofty 2030 goals.
At the beginning of the next decade, Kia wants the energy density of its batteries to increase by 50%. It also wants to cut the cost by 40%. These are two of the main benefits of solid-state technology. The batteries will be smaller and cheaper to produce, but they’ll be more energy-dense and lighter.
