Structural Battery Composites: The Game-Changing Tech Turning Vehicles into Batteries

• What Are SBCs: Structural Battery Composites (SBCs) are advanced materials that serve as both load-bearing structures and rechargeable batteries. Instead of packing cells in a separate heavy enclosure, the structure itself (e.g. a car’s body panel or an aircraft wing) stores energy “just like a human skeleton, the battery has several functions at the same time,” explains Chalmers researcher Richa Chaudhary chalmers.se. By integrating carbon fibers, polymer resins, and battery chemistry, SBCs can carry mechanical loads while storing electrical energy weforum.org.
• How They Work: In typical SBC designs, carbon fiber layers act as battery electrodes and structural reinforcement simultaneously addcomposites.com interestingengineering.com. A specially formulated solid or gel polymer electrolyte is used as the resin matrix, enabling ion transport for charging/discharging while also binding the composite for rigidity addcomposites.com interestingengineering.com. This dual-function architecture eliminates heavy copper wires or aluminum casings, reducing overall weight interestingengineering.com. Early prototypes have achieved ~20–30 Wh/kg energy density – lower than conventional lithium-ion cells, but the mass saved by structural integration yields net gains in performance chalmers.se chalmers.se.
• 2025 State of the Art: As of 2025, SBC technology is emerging from labs into real prototypes. Researchers in Sweden (Chalmers University) announced a “world’s strongest” structural battery in 2024: a carbon-fiber composite battery with ~30 Wh/kg energy density and stiffness comparable to aluminum chalmers.se chalmers.se. While 30 Wh/kg is about 20% of a standard EV battery’s capacity, integrating it into the vehicle’s frame dramatically cuts weight chalmers.se. In fact, electric cars could drive up to 70% farther on a charge if built with competitive structural batteries, according to Chalmers professor Leif Asp chalmers.se. Airbus and others are already experimenting with SBCs for aircraft structures weforum.org, and battery makers like Northvolt and automakers like Tesla are actively exploring structural battery pack designs for next-gen EVs marketreportanalytics.com.
• Notable Players & Efforts: Universities are at the forefront – e.g. Chalmers (Sweden) and KTH Stockholm pioneered carbon-fiber batteries (Physics World named it a top-10 breakthrough in 2018 theinnovator.news), Imperial College London (UK) has a dedicated Structural Power Composites group since the 2010s, and Stanford University (USA) has prototyped battery-integrated chassis for ARPA-E projects. Companies and government projects are accelerating R&D: Airbus and the EU’s Clean Sky program demonstrated a stiffened aircraft panel with built-in batteries (SOLIFLY project), proving energy can be stored in wings/fuselage without degrading mechanical strength electrive.com electrive.com. Williams Advanced Engineering and Italdesign unveiled an EV platform (EVX) in 2021 using a “molded composite structural battery” as the chassis, delivering up to 120 kWh with the battery case itself handling crash loads and stiffness requirements italdesign.it italdesign.it. Even today’s Tesla Model Y utilizes a structural battery pack (cells bonded into the car’s frame) – an early step toward true SBCs weforum.org.
• Breakthroughs & Trends: Recent breakthroughs focus on boosting both energy capacity and structural performance. The Chalmers 2024 battery achieved an elastic modulus of 70 GPa (matching aluminum) up from 25 GPa in earlier versions chalmers.se – a huge leap in stiffness – while maintaining 30 Wh/kg energy density. Another approach in Europe achieved 50 Wh/kg in a semi-solid structural cell for aircraft, though with lower stiffness (~10 GPa) electrive.com. Researchers are now coating carbon fibers with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) for the cathode, allowing the fiber itself to serve as conductor, electrode, and reinforcement all at once interestingengineering.com. This eliminates inactive materials and improves the “massless” energy storage concept. Drones are emerging as a likely first adopter – a carbon fiber drone wing that stores energy could double the drone’s flight time by acting as its own battery, a “big advantage for surveillance, delivery and mapping drones where payload and endurance count,” notes Prof. Leif Asp theinnovator.news. The World Economic Forum even named SBCs one of the Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025, calling it a potential “catalyst for systemic change in transport design and energy consumption” theinnovator.news.
• Expert Insights: Enthusiasm is high but tempered by realism. “SBCs represent a monumental leap in materials science – melding robust mechanical integrity with integrated energy storage. They could radically alter how airplanes, drones, EVs and even electronics are built and powered,” writes the World Economic Forum report theinnovator.news. At the same time, engineering challenges are significant. “It sounds like a really good idea, but the practical implementation was always going to be tough,” admits Prof. Andrew Maynard of ASU, a contributor to the WEF study. “On paper it’s possible to produce these complex batteries, but the design cost, manufacturing, and cost of adoption are very high.” theinnovator.news Leif Asp, who has researched structural batteries since 2007, remains optimistic that with steady progress, “SBCs are close to a tipping point” as performance improves and research publications exploded from <100 in 2016 to over 1,000 today theinnovator.news.
• Challenges to Adoption: Key hurdles include energy density, which still lags conventional cells (requiring further materials innovation to store more energy per kg without sacrificing strength) chalmers.se; long-term durability, as these batteries must endure vibrations, impacts and structural fatigue over years; safety (preventing and managing failures or fires in a load-bearing structure); and cost and manufacturing scale-up, since producing large composite structures with battery chemistry is more complex than making standard batteries theinnovator.news theinnovator.news. There’s also a regulatory gap: industries lack standards for certifying a wing or car chassis that is also a battery. New safety regulations and testing protocols will be needed before mass deployment theinnovator.news. Sustainability is a double-edged sword – SBCs can reduce overall material usage and enable lighter, more energy-efficient vehicles, but materials like carbon fiber are carbon-intensive to produce and hard to recycle theinnovator.news. Researchers are exploring bio-based fibers and recyclable resins to address this theinnovator.news.
• 5–10 Year Outlook: Experts predict niche adoption within the next 5 years, and broader commercial use in the 2030s. Small-scale applications like consumer electronics and drones could appear first – “credit card-thin smartphones or laptops that weigh half as much… are the closest in time,” says Asp, though they will likely need significant investment to reach mass production chalmers.se. For transportation, early uses may be in unmanned aerial vehicles or specialty automotive parts (e.g. a structural battery car roof replacing a standard battery module, yielding ~20% vehicle weight reduction) theinnovator.news theinnovator.news. Mainstream electric cars and aircraft integrating full structural battery designs are roughly 5–10 years away according to industry watchers theinnovator.news. By the early 2030s, we might see limited-edition EVs where the entire chassis is an energy-storing composite, or next-generation eVTOL aircraft with multi-functional airframes. The potential impacts are massive: every 10% reduction in vehicle weight can improve an EV’s range by a significant margin (one estimate suggests up to ~70% under certain conditions) theinnovator.news and improve fuel efficiency of aircraft by ~15% on medium flights theinnovator.news. Lighter vehicles also mean less battery capacity needed for the same range, creating a virtuous cycle of weight savings. Environmentally, if SBCs enable a 15–20% weight cut in cars and planes, that directly translates to energy savings and lower emissions per mile weforum.org weforum.org. Over the next decade, as energy densities inch upward (future SBC concepts are aiming for >100 Wh/kg and beyond) electrive.com and manufacturing knowledge matures, SBCs could evolve from lab curiosities to a standard design paradigm in transportation, aerospace, and even building materials. The Dubai Future Foundation calls this a “critical inflection point for global industries… a fundamental redesign of how material functionality is conceived” theinnovator.news theinnovator.news – envisioning cars, planes, even houses built from structures that power themselves.
• Investment & Market Landscape: The race for “massless” energy storage has sparked growing investment worldwide. Venture capital and government funding in SBC-related startups and projects have risen steadily in the past few years. For example, Sweden’s Sinonus AB (a Chalmers spin-off) aimed to commercialize carbon-fiber batteries (though it struggled to attract investors and was eventually wound down) theinnovator.news theinnovator.news. On the other hand, new entrants are gaining traction: Italy’s Volta Structural Energy raised seed funding in 2023 to develop structural battery tech i3p.it, and the UK’s The Structural Battery Company (founded 2022) is prototyping EV battery packs that double as vehicle frames – “safer, lighter and stronger than conventional battery packs,” in the words of founder John Moffat zagdaily.com. Large industry players are also on board: Northvolt AB (a major battery manufacturer) reportedly secured funding in late 2023 specifically to scale up structural battery development marketreportanalytics.com, and Tesla’s engineering team has built structural battery pack designs into its vehicle roadmap marketreportanalytics.com. Aerospace/defense companies like BAE Systems have invested in structural power for next-gen drones and fighter airframes marketreportanalytics.com. Governments are injecting money through research programs – the European Commission supported the SOLIFLY project under Clean Sky 2 to advance structural batteries for aviation electrive.com electrive.com, and in the U.S., DARPA and ARPA-E have funded multifunctional energy storage materials for military and EV applications. Market analysts foresee robust growth: one projection estimates the structural battery market could reach ~$1.6 billion by 2025, growing ~16% annually as industries adopt these materials marketreportanalytics.com. Over the next decade, as EV sales and electrification efforts soar, SBCs could command a significant share of the composites and battery market. Automobiles are expected to be the largest segment (potentially ~80% of early demand) as manufacturers seek weight savings and longer range marketreportanalytics.com, followed by aerospace (where weight is premium) and niche sectors like high-end drones and robotics marketreportanalytics.com.

Structural Battery Composites: A Deep Dive

What Are Structural Battery Composites (SBCs) and How Do They Work?

In a nutshell, Structural Battery Composites are materials that function as both the skeleton and the battery of a device. Traditional batteries are standalone units – think of the heavy lithium-ion pack bolted into an electric car’s floor. That pack provides energy but adds dead weight and usually needs its own casing for protection. SBCs flip this concept: the energy storage is built into the device’s structure itself, so the material that carries load (like a car frame, body panel, or drone wing) is also storing electrical energy. As the World Economic Forum defines it, SBCs “integrate load-bearing mechanical components and rechargeable energy storage” in one weforum.org.

How is this achieved? The magic lies in advanced composite materials. Most SBC designs use a carbon fiber-reinforced polymer as the base. Carbon fibers are not only light and strong – ideal for structural support – but they also happen to be electrically conductive and can even intercalate lithium ions (much like the graphite anode in a Li-ion battery). Researchers leverage this by using carbon fiber layers as battery electrodes. For example, a typical structural battery might have a carbon fiber laminate that acts as the negative electrode (anode), sometimes coated with battery material, and another carbon fiber layer (or another composite) as the positive electrode (cathode) addcomposites.com interestingengineering.com. In one recent design out of Chalmers University, the carbon fiber itself served as the anode, while carbon fiber fabric coated in lithium iron phosphate (LFP) served as the cathode addcomposites.com interestingengineering.com.

Between these electrode layers, instead of a liquid electrolyte and separator as in a normal cell, there is a multifunctional electrolyte matrix – essentially a special polymer resin infused with lithium salts (and sometimes a ceramic or gel component) that conducts ions but is also solid and tough addcomposites.com addcomposites.com. This electrolyte matrix bonds to the carbon fibers, gluing the whole sandwich structure together much like epoxy in a regular carbon fiber composite, so it contributes to mechanical stiffness while allowing lithium ions to flow during charge/discharge. The result is a laminated structure that can be shaped into car body panels, UAV wings, or device casings, storing energy throughout its volume. As one engineer quipped, a structural battery is like a high-tech “sandwich”: the core material is made from cells, and the skins are structural faces – together more than three times stronger than a comparable steel frame zagdaily.com.

By serving two functions at once, SBCs promise what engineers call “massless energy storage.” Of course, the mass isn’t truly zero – but effectively, if your battery is also your structure, then battery weight ceases to be a penalty because it’s doing double duty. In a sense, you are eliminating the redundant weight of a separate battery pack casing and support structure. This could yield dramatic benefits in any weight-sensitive application. For instance, in aircraft and satellites, every kilogram saved means improved efficiency or more payload. In electric cars, reducing weight extends driving range or allows smaller batteries for the same range. Removing heavy enclosures and integrating cells can also save space, allowing novel designs. Imagine an EV where the door panels, roof, and hood all store energy – you free up interior space and lower the center of gravity, all while powering the vehicle.

It’s important to note that current SBC prototypes still use lithium-ion chemistry (typically with carbon fiber as the anode, and lithium-based cathodes), so they operate under similar principles as Li-ion batteries. The difference is in the packaging and materials: carbon fiber acts as electrode and reinforcement, and structural polymers replace inert casings and binders. This integration comes with trade-offs – for example, structural batteries currently can’t reach the same energy density as the best conventional cells, because the design prioritizes stiffness and form. But even at lower stored energy per kg, the net vehicle-level energy density can improve, because you’ve removed a lot of weight from elsewhere. As researcher Leif Asp points out, “not nearly as much energy is required to run an electric car” when the battery weight is slashed by making it part of the structure chalmers.se.

The State of SBC Research and Development in 2025

In 2025, Structural Battery Composites have moved from theoretical concept to an exciting experimental reality – albeit not yet a commercial mainstream product. The field has seen rapid progress in the past few years, reaching several key milestones:

• Significant Lab Breakthroughs: The most publicized advance came from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. In September 2024, Chalmers researchers unveiled a structural battery with an energy density of 30 Wh/kg and an elastic modulus of 70 GPa chalmers.se chalmers.se. To put that in perspective, 30 Wh/kg is roughly one-fifth the energy per weight of typical lithium-ion EV batteries – but the material is as stiff as aluminum metal, meaning it can replace structural parts. Earlier prototypes (circa 2020) were only ~8–10 Wh/kg and much less stiff, so this was a tenfold leap in performance over a few years theinnovator.news theinnovator.news. The Chalmers “proof-of-concept” showed it’s possible to approach practical performance: they estimated such a battery could “halve the weight of a laptop, make a mobile phone as thin as a credit card or increase an electric car’s driving range by up to 70%” by offsetting weight chalmers.se chalmers.se. It was hailed as the world’s strongest structural battery to date.
• Academic Momentum: Research activity on structural batteries has skyrocketed. According to Prof. Asp, as of 2023 there were over 1,000 scientific papers published on the topic (compared to under 100 in 2016) – a sign of booming interest among material scientists and engineers theinnovator.news. This includes work on new materials (e.g. carbon fibers that also store more lithium, solid electrolytes that are both strong and ion-conductive) and sophisticated modeling of electrochemical-mechanical behavior. Notably, Imperial College London (UK) has a team led by Prof. Emile Greenhalgh that has been pursuing “structural power composites” for years, and researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Sweden) collaborate with Chalmers. In the US, universities like Stanford, University of Michigan, and UC San Diego have delved into multifunctional battery structures, often with funding from agencies like ARPA-E. The knowledge base is broadening, and crucially, moving beyond theory to manufacturing techniques for these batteries (such as automated fiber placement for battery composites, as one advanced manufacturing blog detailed addcomposites.com addcomposites.com).
• High-Profile Recognition: The inclusion of structural battery composites in the World Economic Forum’s “Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025” brought mainstream attention to the field theinnovator.news. The WEF report – authored with input from experts at NREL, Arizona State University, and industry – notes that the technology “made significant progress” and is nearing the cusp of commercialization weforum.org. They highlight that today’s electric vehicles already use batteries as part of the structure (for instance, Tesla’s structural battery pack doubles as the car’s floor), but true SBCs will “take that to the next level” by making every body panel an active battery weforum.org. The fact that global organizations and media are discussing SBCs in the context of transformative tech indicates that 2025 is a breakout moment for awareness.
• Prototype Projects & Demonstrations: Outside academia, industry and government-funded projects have yielded promising demos:
  • In Europe, the Clean Sky 2 – SOLIFLY project (2019–2022) built and tested a multifunctional aircraft panel with integrated battery cells. The panel – representative of an airliner’s internal structure – showed that a ~50 Wh/kg semi-solid battery could be embedded into a load-bearing carbon fiber component without significantly weakening it electrive.com electrive.com. “With SOLIFLY, we demonstrated that integrating battery technology into structural components is possible without significantly compromising mechanical properties,” said Dr. Helmut Kühnelt, the project coordinator at AIT electrive.com. This is a crucial validation for aerospace, where safety margins are tight. The project’s success has led to follow-on research into structural batteries for next-gen climate-neutral aircraft electrive.com.
  • In the automotive realm, Williams Advanced Engineering (WAE) and Italdesign unveiled the EVX platform in 2021: a high-performance EV chassis built around a carbon composite structural battery case italdesign.it italdesign.it. In this design, the battery enclosure isn’t a dead box; it is the spine of the car. Front and rear subframes bolt onto a molded composite battery monocoque, which bears the vehicle’s loads and contributes stiffness italdesign.it. The core battery pack offers up to 120 kWh and 1000 kW power output, and because the pack is structural, it reduces reliance on upper body structures for rigidity (allowing more design freedom for the car’s shape) italdesign.it italdesign.it. “Featuring a molded composite structural battery, EVX sets new standards; reducing both investment and part costs,” WAE noted, highlighting that integrating the battery saved weight and complexity in manufacturing italdesign.it. This platform is intended for low-volume premium EVs (up to 10,000 units) and demonstrates that automotive engineers are actively prototyping with SBC principles.
  • Electric Vehicles (current): While no mass-market car yet uses true structural composites to store energy, automakers are inching in that direction. Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3, for example, use a design where the battery pack is a structural element of the chassis – using a stiff adhesive between cells and a simplified pack housing to add torsional rigidity to the vehicle. General Motors has mentioned exploring structural battery pack designs as well. These aren’t fully integrated composites, but they show the trend of treating the battery as part of the structure rather than a standalone box. Looking forward, startups like Aptera (with its solar EV) have hinted at incorporating structural energy storage, and concept cars from companies like Lamborghini (in partnership with MIT) have toyed with ideas of supercapacitor-based structural body panels for bursts of power topspeed.com. The activity in prototyping is robust – the challenge is translating that to production lines.
• Performance Benchmarks: It’s worth summarizing where performance stands as of 2025. Leading structural battery prototypes (like the Chalmers one) achieve ~20–30 Wh/kg energy density and about 60–70% of the mechanical strength of comparable structural materials (like aluminum) chalmers.se chalmers.se. By contrast, a modern standalone lithium battery might store 150–250 Wh/kg but provides no structural strength at all. So SBCs still have an energy deficit to overcome, but they add value in structure. For power capability, structural batteries currently deliver modest power (e.g. the Chalmers cell can output ~9–10 W/kg addcomposites.com, whereas a high-performance lithium battery might do hundreds of W/kg). This indicates SBCs are fine for steady energy supply but not yet for high bursts of power – something researchers are improving by experimenting with structural supercapacitors and hybrid approaches (combining battery + supercap layers) addcomposites.com addcomposites.com. The goal in coming years is to boost energy density closer to 100 Wh/kg and improve power output, so that less or no supplemental battery is needed. There’s optimism that new chemistries (like solid-state electrolytes or lithium-sulfur) could be integrated into structural formats to push these numbers much higher marketreportanalytics.com marketreportanalytics.com.

Who’s Working on SBCs? Key Companies, Institutions, and Initiatives

SBC development is a multidisciplinary effort, spanning universities, corporate R&D, and government labs. Here are some of the notable players and efforts driving this technology:

• Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden): A clear leader in this field, Chalmers has dedicated research groups on structural batteries. Prof. Leif Asp’s team has produced multiple record-setting prototypes and published extensively. They collaborate with KTH Stockholm and were early to demonstrate carbon fiber’s dual role as electrode and reinforcement (their 2018 result was recognized by Physics World) theinnovator.news. Chalmers researchers even spun off a startup, Sinonus AB, to commercialize the tech. Though Sinonus struggled to convince investors initially and paused operations theinnovator.news theinnovator.news, the effort signaled Sweden’s intent to industrialize SBCs. Chalmers continues to receive attention and likely funding – their breakthroughs in 2021 and 2024 garnered global press theinnovator.news theinnovator.news.
• Imperial College London (UK): Imperial’s Structural Power Composites group (led by Prof. Emile Greenhalgh) has been researching multifunctional composites for well over a decade. They have developed structural batteries and supercapacitors for aerospace applications, in partnership with companies like Airbus and Williams F1 earlier on. The UK had a notable project in the 2010s where Imperial and industry partners integrated supercapacitor materials into a car’s carbon fiber hood and trunk lid (Jaguar Land Rover’s concept to capture braking energy in body panels). Imperial’s work has laid much foundational understanding of how to balance electrochemical and mechanical performance, and alumni have seeded expertise into various companies.
• Airbus and Aerospace Industry: The potential weight savings from SBCs are extremely attractive for aviation. Airbus has been publicly experimenting with structural battery concepts – the WEF report cites that “Airbus is already experimenting with SBCs for use in aircraft” theinnovator.news. Aside from the SOLIFLY project (which Airbus was involved in via its research arm), Airbus in the past showed interest via projects like “Composite Structural Energy” under its innovation programs. Other aerospace entities: BAE Systems in the UK had R&D on structural batteries for UAVs (their Inspiration UAV concept around 2018 aimed to use the airframe for energy storage). In the US, NASA has explored structural energy storage for spacecraft and electric aircraft (every ounce counts in space – making satellite panels store energy could eliminate separate battery banks). The Austrian-led SOLIFLY project included partners like Embraer and European research institutes, demonstrating the global reach. We can expect aerospace giants (Boeing, Lockheed Martin, etc.) are keeping a close eye or doing their own classified work, given the payoff of longer range and endurance.
• Automotive and EV Companies: Car manufacturers are understandably interested, since range and weight are constant trade-offs in EVs. Tesla is arguably on the bleeding edge of structural battery implementation (though not using carbon composites): their 4680 battery cells and pack design introduced in 2020 make the battery pack a stressed member of the vehicle chassis for the first time weforum.org. Elon Musk touted this as a manufacturing innovation and a way to simplify the car’s body structure. While that approach still uses conventional cells, it’s a stepping stone to more integrated designs. Volvo Cars has done research on structural batteries – back in 2013, Volvo and Imperial College built a prototype hybrid car with a trunk lid and plenum chamber made from structural energy-storing composite (it used supercapacitor materials embedded in carbon fiber, offering modest energy storage but proving the concept of a functional car part battery). Today, EV startups may be more nimble in trying radical designs: for instance, California-based Aptera Motors has mentioned its solar EV will have an ultra-light composite body to maximize efficiency; while they haven’t confirmed structural batteries, their ethos aligns with it, and future iterations might. In the UK, the aforementioned The Structural Battery Company is directly targeting the EV pack market with a new design that packs cylindrical cells in a structural matrix zagdaily.com. Northvolt, a leading battery manufacturer in Europe, has reportedly earmarked R&D funds for structural battery development and could partner with automakers to supply such tech by late-decade marketreportanalytics.com marketreportanalytics.com. Likewise, companies like Samsung SDI and LG Chem (big battery suppliers) are likely researching how their cells could be incorporated into structural forms – one analysis noted that both Korean giants, plus players like BMW and Airbus, have shown interest through partnerships with research institutions marketreportanalytics.com marketreportanalytics.com.
• Startups and Niche Players: Apart from Sinonus and The Structural Battery Company, other startups globally are tackling various angles of structural energy:
  • Volta Structural Energy (Italy): A spinoff being nurtured in an Italian tech incubator, focusing on structural battery systems (possibly for drones or defense sectors initially). They raised a €1 million seed round in 2023 i3p.it.
  • Bamco (France): A French project (name derived from “Battery As a Structural Component”) was active in late 2010s exploring structural battery materials, possibly involving Renault or other French automotive interest.
  • DEFENSE & Drones: Companies in the defense sector are naturally drawn to any tech that increases endurance. A startup from University of California San Diego won a $2.4M DoD contract to investigate structural batteries for military drones, noting that “customer conversations” in aerospace indicated interest, even if the tech is early qi.ucsd.edu.
  • Energy Storage Firms: Some companies making stationary batteries are interested in structural forms for novel deployment (e.g., structural batteries in off-shore platforms or as part of buildings). However, most stationary use-cases care less about weight, so the impetus is strongest in transport.
• Government Programs: On the funding side, several governments have explicitly funded SBC research as part of broader initiatives:
  • The European Union (through Horizon 2020 and Clean Sky/Clean Aviation) has channeled funds into projects like SOLIFLY and others investigating structural power for aerospace and automotive lightweighting.
  • In the United States, while there hasn’t been a dedicated large program called “Structural Battery,” agencies have included it in their portfolios. ARPA-E’s RANGE program (2013–2018) was about reinventing EV energy storage; some projects looked at using the car frame as a battery casing or developing structural battery electrodes (Stanford had a project under ARPA-E focusing on a multifunctional battery chassis arpa-e.energy.gov). NASA has funded work on “structural energy storage” for aviation. The Department of Defense, through DARPA and others, is perennially interested in lighter power sources for soldiers and systems – for example, DARPA’s 2019 ExCURSION program sought novel ways to reduce weight in energy storage for expeditionary units (though more focused on fuel conversion) darpa.mil. It’s plausible DARPA has smaller efforts on structural batteries given the overlap with advanced materials for defense.
  • Asia: China’s government and companies are investing as well. In fact, Prof. Asp specifically remarked that “huge investments are being made in SBCs in China and in Singapore” as of 2024 theinnovator.news. China’s EV industry is massive, and if structural batteries promise an edge in range or cost, Chinese universities and battery makers (like CATL or BYD) will pursue it. Singapore’s interest might tie into its advanced materials research hubs and aerospace ambitions. While details are scant publicly, this suggests that globally, everyone wants a slice of this potentially paradigm-shifting technology.

Breakthroughs, Trends, and Real-World Implementations (as of 2025)

While fully commercial structural batteries aren’t on the market yet, recent breakthroughs and pilot implementations signal the trends shaping this field:

• Lab to Real-World Transition: The Chalmers 2024 structural battery cell is often cited as a breakthrough that inches SBCs from lab prototypes toward real-world viability. Its 30 Wh/kg energy density, while modest, is achieved in a cell that also provides 25 GPa stiffness (prior versions) to now 70 GPa chalmers.se chalmers.se. The researchers claim this level of performance is “twice as good” as any previous attempt and finally “energy-dense enough to be used commercially” in certain applications chalmers.se. What does “commercially” mean here? Likely not cars just yet, but smaller devices. Indeed, Asp suggested that consumer electronics might be early adopters: a structural battery could form the shell of a laptop or phone, cutting out the heavy aluminum casing and separate battery module chalmers.se. We could see ultra-thin, rigid phone bodies that double as the battery – imagine your phone’s frame is the battery, enabling that credit-card thickness. This could happen in a few years if manufacturing scales, since the total energy required for a phone is low enough (~10 Wh) that even a 30 Wh/kg structural battery in the case could handle it (if the phone case weighs ~150g, it might store ~4.5 Wh – not all the way there, but combined with more layers or slight increases, it’s plausible).
• Drones & eVTOLs: Drones are a hotbed for early structural battery adoption. Why? They are weight-sensitive, relatively low in total energy needs (compared to passenger cars), and often made of composites already. Several research groups and companies have built demonstrator drones with structural battery components. For example, NASA had a prototype where a drone’s wing spar embedded batteries; in Sweden, Chalmers is eyeing drones as the first use-case, claiming an SBC-equipped drone “could double flight times” versus a conventional design theinnovator.news. Longer flight means more utility in mapping, delivery, etc. The eVTOL (electric air taxi) industry also stands to benefit – these vehicles need every bit of weight savings to increase their range or payload. The CityAirbus eVTOL concept was studied in a 2021 paper that found replacing all suitable structure with structural battery composites could cut weight by 25% sciencedirect.com. However, current SBC performance isn’t sufficient yet for eVTOL, as demanding as that is. WAE’s analysis (for a small aircraft) suggests targets around 70+ Wh/kg and >50 GPa modulus for structural batteries to be truly viable in eVTOLs addcomposites.com. Still, this is clearly a trend: airframe manufacturers are actively participating in SBC research, anticipating that a hybrid approach (maybe some structural battery elements combined with regular batteries) could yield the needed reliability and performance.
• Automotive Structural Packs: On the ground, structural battery packs in vehicles are moving from concept to limited reality. We described WAE/Italdesign’s EVX platform – essentially a rolling chassis ready for coachbuilders to drop a body on. That is a near-commercial prototype targeting specialty car makers by the mid-2020s. Another example: Lotus Cars (UK) reportedly investigated using structural batteries in the frame of a supercar (Lotus being renowned for lightweight design). Italdesign itself, as part of the VW Group, could influence future Audis or Lamborghinis with structural battery tech gleaned from EVX. One notable real implementation: Electric buses and vans sometimes integrate batteries into the floor structure. While not exotic composites, some bus manufacturers have load-bearing battery packs to maximize interior space. The trend is clear – the barrier between “battery” and “structure” in vehicles is thinning.
• Energy Storage in Infrastructure: A forward-looking trend is incorporating energy storage into built infrastructure and wearables. The WEF mused about “buildings that are not just shelters, but active energy systems” weforum.org – for instance, using structural battery panels in construction so that walls or flooring in a smart home store electricity from solar panels. This is far-off and will require safe, non-toxic chemistries, but conceptually intriguing (imagine a house that can self-power during outages because its very walls are batteries). On a smaller scale, robotics could benefit: humanoid robots and exoskeletons struggle with battery weight and bulk. If robot limbs and exosuit frames hold charge, it could extend operation time. “Power is a major issue in humanoid robots… if you can integrate [batteries] into the exoskeleton or parts, it increases energy density and decreases cost,” noted Prof. Maynard theinnovator.news theinnovator.news. We may see early use of structural batteries in high-end robots for defense or space (where cost is less an issue).
• Material and Design Innovations: A trend within the field is using artificial intelligence and computational design to optimize these multifunctional materials. Designing a structural battery is a complex trade-off – you want high stiffness, high strength, high energy, and safety. Researchers are employing AI-driven algorithms to search vast material combinations (e.g. new fiber weaves, nanoparticle additives, novel polymer electrolytes) for better performance theinnovator.news. Another aspect is multiphysics modeling – essentially digital twins of a structural battery to predict how it behaves mechanically while charging/discharging. This helps refine designs before building them, speeding up innovation crimsonpublishers.com nature.com.

In summary, real-world implementations as of 2025 are mostly in pilot or prototype stages: a car platform here, an airplane panel there, a laptop casing in a lab. No mainstream product on sale yet is using an honest-to-goodness structural composite battery (beyond the transitional examples of structural packs). But given the pace of breakthroughs, it’s very likely that by the late 2020s the first commercial offerings will appear – perhaps a niche drone or a premium electric hypercar that proudly advertises a structural carbon battery chassis as its USP.

Challenges and Limitations

Despite the excitement, SBCs face significant challenges that must be overcome before you see them in everyday cars or airplanes:

1. Energy Storage Capacity vs. Structural Function: This is the fundamental technical tightrope. Adding more battery-active material (like making fibers store more lithium, or adding thicker electrode layers) tends to weaken the composite’s mechanical properties or add weight. Conversely, optimizing for strength (more fibers, strong resins) leaves less room for electrochemical storage. The current ~30 Wh/kg level, while impressive for a dual-function material, might need to at least double to ~60+ Wh/kg to be attractive in many EV and aerospace scenarios. For context, an electric car with only 30 Wh/kg structural batteries would need a huge amount of structure to get, say, a 60 kWh pack – likely impractical. So, researchers need to improve battery chemistry within SBCs. This could involve new high-capacity fiber materials, solid-state electrolytes that allow lithium metal (for higher Wh/kg), or even structural integration of future chemistries like lithium-sulfur which have very high theoretical energy. The WEF report underscores that achieving “high energy storage density” in SBCs is still a key challenge ahead theinnovator.news.

2. Manufacturing and Scale-Up: Making a structural battery is far more complex than making a normal composite or a normal battery separately. It merges two manufacturing worlds. You need precision like in battery cell fabrication (avoiding contamination, ensuring consistent chemistry) and you need the large-scale structural fabrication (laying fibers, curing polymers without voids, etc.). Any defects could be catastrophic (a crack in a structural composite or an internal short in a battery). Scaling up production will require new manufacturing processes: perhaps automated fiber placement machines that also integrate electrode coatings, or lamination techniques to assemble large battery laminates reliably. Quality control is another issue – one needs to inspect these components for both mechanical integrity and battery function (possibly using advanced imaging or embedded sensors). Cost is a related factor: carbon fiber composites are pricey today, and adding battery functionality could initially make them even pricier. Andrew Maynard pointed out that “the design cost, manufacturing and cost of adoption are very high” at this stage theinnovator.news. Until economies of scale kick in and processes mature, SBCs might remain confined to high-end applications willing to pay a premium for weight savings.

3. Safety Concerns: Batteries can fail violently (thermal runaway, fires), and structures experience crashes and impacts – combining the two raises new safety questions. If a structural battery in a car were punctured in an accident, could it catch fire more readily, and how to mitigate that? Conversely, if you design the battery to be super safe (with heavy shielding or conservative operation), you might lose the weight advantage. There’s progress here: the use of solid or gel electrolytes in SBCs can improve safety (less flammable than liquid electrolytes) interestingengineering.com. The structural electrolyte used in some prototypes is non-flammable and can also add some thermal stability. Moreover, the distributed nature of a structural battery might mean it doesn’t concentrate all energy in one box – potentially safer failure modes. However, these are uncharted waters for regulators. Crash-testing a car with structural batteries or certifying an airplane with them will require demonstrating that in all foreseeable scenarios, the structure-battery won’t create new hazards. New safety systems might be needed: perhaps integrated sensors in the structure to detect damage or internal short-circuits (indeed, the SOLIFLY follow-up project is embedding sensors to monitor the battery health in real time electrive.com). Manufacturers will have to design fail-safes: e.g. segments of the structural battery that can be isolated if damaged, or fire-retardant layers. All this will take time and testing. Until regulators are convinced (which in aviation can take many years), SBCs won’t fly commercially. The WEF noted that “a new set of safety regulations and standards must be developed before wide-scale adoption is possible” theinnovator.news – indicating that the regulatory groundwork is as important as the technology itself.

4. Longevity and Maintenance: Batteries degrade with charge cycles; structures are expected to last decades in some cases. How to reconcile this? If an EV’s body panels are batteries, will the car lose structural integrity as the batteries age? Ideally no – the structure should last even if the battery capacity fades. But if capacity does fade, do you replace the whole panel? This could be expensive and generate waste if done frequently. Alternatively, perhaps SBCs can be engineered to have very long cycle life or be easily reconditioned. Another aspect: damage and repair. A minor fender-bender in a normal car dents a panel – body shops fix it. But if that panel was storing energy, a dent could mean a shorted cell or a lost chunk of battery capacity. We’ll need ways to repair or safely dispose of damaged structural batteries. It could push automakers to design modular structural battery sections that can be swapped out, rather than one giant integrated piece.

5. Environmental & Supply Chain Issues: As mentioned, carbon fiber (a key ingredient in many SBCs) has a high carbon footprint in manufacturing. If SBCs lead to using even more carbon fiber in vehicles, that upfront cost to the environment must be mitigated by end-use gains (lighter vehicles using less energy). A study from Chalmers assessed the life-cycle of structural battery composites in cars and suggested that if done right – especially if renewable energy is used in manufacturing – the weight-reduction benefits can outweigh the carbon cost over the vehicle’s life research.chalmers.se. Still, improving carbon fiber production or finding alternatives (like nanotube fibers or bio-derived fibers) would make SBCs greener. Recycling is another headache: at end-of-life, you’d have to separate the battery chemicals from the composite material. Current composites are notoriously hard to recycle (thermoset plastics and fibers often end up landfilled or downcycled). If we start building thousands of SBC-equipped cars, we need a plan to recycle or reuse those structural batteries. The ideal scenario might be second-life usage: for example, an EV’s structural battery panel after, say, 15 years might only hold 70% of original charge – maybe it could be reused as part of a stationary energy storage system (like a wall of structural battery panels storing solar energy). This way the material gets a second life before recycling. Manufacturers are conscious of this challenge; some are exploring reversible or remoldable resin systems that could allow recovery of fibers and reintegration of battery materials.

In sum, widespread adoption is gated by solving these technical and regulatory challenges. The path is similar to other new technologies: demonstrate safety and reliability in a niche, gradually build confidence, scale up production to lower costs, and address end-of-life concerns. It might take a decade or more for SBCs to reach the level of trust we have in today’s lithium-ion batteries (which themselves took decades to mature). But none of these challenges are show-stoppers – they are frontiers to cross, as evidenced by the steady improvements and expert optimism in the field.

Forecast: The Next 5–10 Years for Structural Battery Composites

What will the rest of the 2020s and early 2030s hold for structural battery composites? Based on current trends, expert commentary, and the pace of innovation, we can forecast several developments:

Short Term (Next 2–3 Years, by ~2025–2027): We’re likely to see small-scale commercialization begin. This could be in the form of:

• Niche products: a high-end drone or unmanned system that advertises structural battery components to achieve longer endurance. Possibly a military surveillance drone or a commercial mapping UAV integrating battery into the wings – a low-volume, high-value product.
• Prototype consumer devices: Perhaps a limited-release gadget (a phone, laptop, or wearables) using a structural battery frame. Companies like Samsung or Apple continually seek to make devices thinner and lighter; if a supplier can provide a safe structural battery component (say, a tablet chassis that doubles as a battery), we might see it in a premium model.
• Automotive testbeds: A concept car or a racing car demonstrating structural batteries. Racing is a great domain for this because performance trumps cost. For example, Formula E or Le Mans prototype cars could experiment with structural battery elements to shave weight. In 2023, Lamborghini discussed an innovative supercapacitor-based structural carbon fiber for a future hybrid supercar topspeed.com – by 2026, we might see an exotic sports car incorporate something along those lines.
• Infrastructure demos: Trial projects where structural battery panels are used in something like an unmanned solar aircraft (e.g. Airbus’s Zephyr HAPS could use structural batteries to store solar energy while acting as the wing skin) or in experimental building designs (architectural prototypes of energy-storing walls).

During this period, standards and testing procedures will start formulating. Organizations (SAE for automotive, ASTM for materials, EASA/FAA for aerospace) will likely convene working groups to draft how to evaluate structural battery safety, performance, and recycling. Governments might issue research grants specifically aimed at those challenges (for example, U.S. DOE might launch a program on “lightweight multifunctional EV structures” to push the tech forward).

Medium Term (4–7 Years, ~2028–2030): If early trials prove successful, by the late-2020s we could witness initial adoption in mainstream industries:

• Automotive Integration: Possibly a commercial EV model using structural battery composites for a non-critical part of the structure. For instance, an electric SUV could have a load floor or roof made of structural battery composite, supplementing the main battery. This would allow the automaker to advertise weight reduction and a small range boost while mitigating risk (if that part fails, it’s not as catastrophic as the whole frame). As confidence grows, subsequent models might increase the fraction of vehicle structure that is battery. Industry analysts predict automotive will dominate SBC demand – potentially around 80% of the market – because the need to reduce EV weight and increase range will only intensify marketreportanalytics.com. By 2030, every major carmaker could have an SBC research program or partnership. We might see an alliance like “Toyota partners with Toray for structural battery material in EVs” or “GM uses LG Chem’s structural cells in a new Ultium 2.0 platform” if all goes well.
• Aerospace Use: In aviation, changes come slower due to regulatory hurdles, but we may see limited use in secondary aircraft structures. Perhaps a small electric aircraft (like a 2-seater trainer plane or an eVTOL air taxi) gets certified with a structural battery floor or interior partition that doubles as a backup battery. Or non-passenger aircraft like high-altitude drones and airships adopt SBCs to stay aloft longer. Boeing and Airbus might start integrating structural battery panels in experimental sections of future concept planes (for example, interior panels that power cabin systems, or control surfaces with built-in backup power for actuators). The potential 15% fuel savings on a 1500 km flight by weight reduction theinnovator.news will keep them motivated, especially as the aviation sector pushes for decarbonization.
• Energy & Grid Applications: Although not the primary focus, by 2030 we might see structural batteries considered in grid storage or renewable energy. Think of wind turbine blades with integrated batteries to buffer fluctuations (if materials allow), or marine vessels using structural battery hull components to save space for cargo. If the technology matures, it could spill over beyond vehicles.
• Scale and Cost: By the end of the decade, if adoption ramps up, manufacturing scale will increase and costs should come down. Initially, an SBC material might cost significantly more per kWh than a plain battery, but offers weight savings. As volume grows, the cost premium narrows. Economies of scale in carbon fiber production (which are expected as more industries use composites) and battery production can benefit SBCs. Some forecasts see the structural battery market reaching multiple billions of dollars by 2030 mobilityforesights.com – indicating substantial manufacturing activity. We might also see supply chain formation: suppliers specializing in structural battery electrolytes, or fiber companies tailoring carbon fiber for electrochemical performance, etc.
• Environmental Impact: If EVs with SBCs start hitting the road en masse by 2030, the environmental payoff begins: lighter EVs means more efficient EVs. A rule of thumb improvement is ~6-8% energy efficiency gain per 10% weight reduction for cars weforum.org. That could translate to smaller batteries needed, easing demand for raw battery materials (lithium, nickel, etc.) on a per-vehicle basis. Thus SBCs could indirectly help with resource constraints by making energy use more efficient.

Long Term (8–10+ Years, 2030s): Looking into the early-to-mid 2030s, if current progress holds, structural battery composites could become a common engineering solution:

• Electric vehicles might routinely use SBCs in their design – perhaps the phrase “structural battery” will be as normal as “unibody frame” is today. A 2035 model electric sedan might have, for example, the entire floorpan and firewall made of structural battery composite, contributing, say, 30 kWh of storage, with supplemental cells for the rest. This hybrid approach could optimize cost and safety (some conventional cells plus some structural storage).
• Next-gen Aircraft: We could see advanced aircraft like the proposed electric short-haul planes (up to 50 passengers) using structural batteries in wings or the fuselage skin to extend range without adding weight. By that time, regulatory frameworks for such use might be established, especially if interim unmanned or smaller piloted aircraft have proven safe.
• New Mobility and Designs: SBCs might enable concepts not feasible before. For instance, flying cars or personal aerial vehicles could really use every efficiency trick – structural batteries might be a key enabler there (Maynard and Asp indeed mention “individually owned flying cars” eventually following drones in adopting SBCs theinnovator.news theinnovator.news). Similarly, hyperloops or high-speed trains might integrate batteries structurally to power auxiliary systems or even propulsion between charging stations.
• Smart Infrastructure: Potentially, buildings of the 2030s that incorporate solar generation might use structural battery walls or foundations to store power and improve grid resilience. The idea of “massless energy storage” extends anywhere we have both weight-bearing needs and energy needs. Even consumer products – maybe electric bicycles or scooters where the frame is the battery, cutting out those bulky battery packs and making sleeker designs.

In terms of impact, by making energy storage ubiquitous and unobtrusive, SBCs could help society in achieving cleaner transportation and energy goals. Economically, industries that adopt SBCs aggressively could gain an edge by selling products with better performance (longer-range EVs, more efficient aircraft). Entire supply chains will shift – for example, the steel vs. aluminum vs. composite battle in car manufacturing could tilt further towards composites if they offer energy functionality that metals cannot. Geopolitically, if SBCs allow using less lithium (through weight reduction and potentially new chemistries), it might ease some raw material bottlenecks or dependencies (today, ~85% of lithium refining is done by just 3 countries weforum.org; structural batteries won’t eliminate lithium use but could diversify how we deploy energy storage, and might incorporate more common elements through novel electrodes).

The next decade (2025–2035) will be critical. As the Dubai Future Foundation concluded in their outlook, organizations that invest early in SBC technology will be positioned to “redesign entire product categories, reduce energy consumption across sectors, and develop new economic models that challenge existing paradigms.” theinnovator.news Those that ignore it may scramble later if the tech matures and competitors leapfrog with lighter, multi-functional products. Collaboration across materials science, electrochemistry, and design will be key, as no single field can solve all the challenges in isolation theinnovator.news.

To temper optimism with realism: it’s possible SBCs will find use in certain domains and not others. They might prove most valuable where performance is paramount (aerospace, racing, drones) and less so in cost-sensitive mass markets until costs drop. But even moderate adoption in vehicles and aircraft can have sizeable environmental benefits and open design possibilities unthinkable with conventional batteries.

Investment Landscape and Market Potential

From a market perspective, Structural Battery Composites represent a fast-emerging segment at the intersection of the $100+ billion composites industry and the $~90 billion battery industry. Although still nascent, the investment trajectory is rising as both private and public sectors recognize the potential.

• Venture Capital and Startups: In recent years, a number of startups focusing on structural energy storage have attracted seed and early-stage funding. We discussed Volta Structural Energy (Italy), which secured about €1 million in seed funding i3p.it – a modest start, but significant for a deep-tech materials venture. In the UK, The Structural Battery Company went through an accelerator (with support from NatWest Bank and Warwick Manufacturing Group) to position itself for raising funds zagdaily.com zagdaily.com. The fact that such accelerators are featuring SBC startups indicates investor interest in clean transport innovations. Another example is an Oxford-based venture NanoHIVE focusing on nano-engineered structural power composites; early-stage incubators and university funds are seeding these companies with capital and mentorship, betting on future payoff when larger industries adopt the tech.
• Corporate Investment and Partnerships: Big corporations are also investing internally or via partnerships. Northvolt’s funding in late 2023 to accelerate structural battery manufacturing R&D marketreportanalytics.com suggests that major battery makers foresee a market for these products – possibly supplying “structural cells” or materials to automakers. Tesla, known for vertical integration, might develop its own structural battery designs in-house (their 2020 Battery Day presentation hinted at bonding cells into structure for improved mass efficiency). Materials giants like Dow or Toray (a leading carbon fiber producer) are likely exploring new materials to supply for structural batteries. The market report excerpt indicated strategic collaborations, e.g. BMW AG partnering with research institutes (like MIT) and others for next-gen battery structures marketreportanalytics.com. Indeed, automakers often collaborate on pre-competitive research; we might see consortia forming to share the development burden of SBC technology, similar to how consortia formed for autonomous driving tech in its early days.
• Government Funding and Policy: Governments have an interest in supporting SBC development because it aligns with broader goals: energy efficiency, emissions reduction, and technological leadership. We have seen EU funding through Clean Sky. If structural batteries are identified as a key enabler for electric aviation or long-range EVs, there could be targeted funding calls. For instance, a national science foundation might set up a program for “multifunctional materials for energy” offering grants to universities and startups. On the policy side, if SBCs prove to reduce energy consumption, they could even be incentivized in future efficiency standards (for example, an EV that uses structural batteries could get credits for weight reduction benefits). It’s early for that, but not unimaginable in a decade when regulators look holistically at vehicle efficiency.
• Market Size Projections: Quantifying the market size is tricky at this stage, but analysts are attempting it. A report by MarketReportAnalytics projected the global structural battery market to reach around $1.6 billion by 2025 with a ~16% CAGR marketreportanalytics.com. That figure likely includes initial deployments and high-value niches. Looking further, MobilityForesights (another research firm) anticipates the market growing substantially through 2030, though they keep exact numbers proprietary without purchase mobilityforesights.com. For context, if even a small percentage of the multi-million EVs produced annually start using structural battery parts, that’s a multi-billion dollar business: imagine 5% of an EV’s battery capacity is structural by 2030 – that could correspond to tens of GWh of structural batteries needed, worth several billions in value. The composites market (for automotive and aerospace) is itself large – estimated around $70+ billion by 2025 mordorintelligence.com. If even a fraction of composite components transition to energy-storing versions, that creates a significant new sub-market.
• Sector-wise opportunities:
  • In automotive, the value-add of SBCs can be sold at a premium (longer range EV or lighter sports car). Customers may pay extra for a lighter vehicle, so automakers could justify the cost initially in luxury or performance segments. As volume increases, SBC components may actually help reduce costs by combining functions (the WEF report notes potential manufacturing cost reduction by eliminating separate parts theinnovator.news). This could be attractive for EV startups trying to differentiate themselves in range or for established OEMs to offer a higher-end option.
  • In aviation, the market might at first be limited (since the number of planes made is smaller than cars), but the value per unit is extremely high. Airlines would pay handsomely for a 15% fuel efficiency gain. So structural battery parts for aircraft could command high prices. Companies that develop certified aerospace-grade SBC materials could find a lucrative niche.
  • The drone market and robotics are fast-growing sectors that could quickly adopt SBCs to gain endurance and performance edges. Even if volumes are moderate, it’s a foot in the door to prove the tech.
  • Military applications (though not “public” market in the consumer sense) could drive a lot of investment too – defense departments might pour funds into structural power for the advantages it brings to soldiers (lighter power packs) and vehicles (longer missions). Those investments often spur commercial spin-offs later (think of how the internet or GPS started).

One interesting dynamic is that SBCs blur industry lines: battery makers, materials companies, and manufacturers will need to collaborate in new ways. A car company may need to directly engage with carbon fiber suppliers and battery chemists together, rather than treating battery and body as separate supply chains. This could reshape supplier relationships and possibly create new integrated companies that specialize in turnkey structural energy solutions.

Given the current trajectory, it’s reasonable to expect that by the early 2030s, structural battery composites will move from a speculative technology to a competitive marketplace. We’ll likely see multiple suppliers offering certified structural battery materials, multiple OEMs incorporating them, and continuous innovation yielding better performance at lower cost.

Investors keeping an eye on this space are essentially betting on a future where “every surface is a battery” – a future where energy storage is embedded everywhere it logically can be, to maximize efficiency. It’s a compelling vision: cars powered by their own frames, planes by their skins, and gadgets by their casings. Achieving that vision will take considerable R&D and clever engineering, but as of 2025, the course is set and momentum is building. The coming years will tell us just how far this marriage of structure and power can go in revolutionizing our devices, vehicles, and infrastructure.