Batteries Powered By Rust? This Startup Raised $750 Million to Build Them.

Aug 13, 2026 09:00 PM - 1 hour ago 1

Form Energy’s iron-air batteries tin support moving for 100 hours straight, acold longer than modular lithium-ion batteries.

By Jonathan Small | edited by Dan Bova | Aug 13, 2026

In subject class, you astir apt learned that rust forms erstwhile robust reacts pinch h2o and air. Now a tech startup is turning that aforesaid guidance into a battery. Form Energy calls the clean-energy process “reversible rusting.” The artillery takes successful oxygen and turns robust into rust to discharge power, past reverses the process to recharge. The institution conscionable raised $750 million, pushing its full backing past $2 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The batteries past longer than the Energizer Bunny. While modular lithium-ion batteries tally for a fewer hours astatine a time, Form’s tin support going for 100 hours straight, agelong capable to get a inferior done a multi-day grid emergency for illustration a wintertime storm.

The money is going toward ramping up manufacturing astatine Form Energy’s Weirton, West Virginia works and its first activity of commercialized projects, including a 300-megawatt installation pinch inferior Xcel Energy tied to a Google information halfway successful Minnesota. Form’s database of projects lined up to build has quadrupled this year, from 20 to 80 gigawatt-hours, driven mostly by the AI information halfway boom straining the powerfulness grid.

In subject class, you astir apt learned that rust forms erstwhile robust reacts pinch h2o and air. Now a tech startup is turning that aforesaid guidance into a battery. Form Energy calls the clean-energy process “reversible rusting.” The artillery takes successful oxygen and turns robust into rust to discharge power, past reverses the process to recharge. The institution conscionable raised $750 million, pushing its full backing past $2 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The batteries past longer than the Energizer Bunny. While modular lithium-ion batteries tally for a fewer hours astatine a time, Form’s tin support going for 100 hours straight, agelong capable to get a inferior done a multi-day grid emergency for illustration a wintertime storm.

The money is going toward ramping up manufacturing astatine Form Energy’s Weirton, West Virginia works and its first activity of commercialized projects, including a 300-megawatt installation pinch inferior Xcel Energy tied to a Google information halfway successful Minnesota. Form’s database of projects lined up to build has quadrupled this year, from 20 to 80 gigawatt-hours, driven mostly by the AI information halfway boom straining the powerfulness grid.

Jonathan Small is simply a bestselling author, journalist, producer, and podcast host. For 25 years, he... Read more

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