CATL sets 'industry-leading' solid-state battery production timeline

CATL has put 2027 on the solid-state battery calendar again, this time in reply to investors. The company says it keeps investing firmly in solid-state cells, that its technology leads the industry, and that pilot production will start in 2027.

The capacity crunch for solid-state batteries that offer much higher energy density is apparently easing as new lines come online, although growing demand will keep utilization high, hence CATL's small batch phrasing. The world's biggest EV battery manufacturer first scoffed at the solid-state battery hype, with CEO Robin Zeng citing ten years of research and the push to adopt sodium-ion and semi-solid cells instead.

Then it changed its mind, targeting 2027 at about 1% penetration and 500 Wh/kg, backed by 1,000 engineers working on the solid-state battery technology. Some 20 Ah sulfide samples followed, and in October 2025 CATL confirmed the timeframe but warned about scale, pointing to use in drones and robots before mass-market EVs.

Previously, CATL's chief scientist Wu Kai has rated solid-state battery production readiness at 4/9 and predicted 8/9 by 2027. At this year's Summer Davos in Dalian, however, its chairman Zeng Yuqun said the technology has still only reached level 4, with level 9 meaning mass production. He added that reliability, supply, and market acceptance matter as much as the chemistry.

Some startup rivals beg to differ as they began directly with solid-state battery development, skipping the liquid electrolyte altogether to have a chance against giants like CATL or BYD by jumping to the novel technology from the get-go. Eve Energy has started production of 10 Ah sulfide cells at 300 Wh/kg for drones and humanoid robots. Sunwoda has a 400 Wh/kg polymer cell ready, a 520 Wh/kg prototype, and 2027 in its sights, too, while Chery promises 600 Wh/kg cars the same year. Toyota is aiming for premium Lexus models at a higher price than those powered by cells with a liquid electrolyte.

China is also making the world's first effort to standardize and regulate the solid-state battery technology. Its first standardization effort separates hybrid cells with about 5% liquid and 95% solid electrolyte from true solid-state ones. CATL once dismissed the hybrid solid-liquid approach as impractical but has since embraced it as a bridge technology. Beijing's own five-year plan has set 2030 for initial solid-state batteries produced at mass scale for everyday electric vehicles, which somewhat vindicates CATL's cautious tone regarding the technology's mass adoption timeframe.

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