Tesla's largest-scale battery project? Four new versions of the 4680 battery planned to be launched in 2026, including a dedicated version for Robotaxi

Tesla may have launched its largest battery project in 21 years, aiming to develop and launch four new 4680 batteries simultaneously.

Tech media The Information reported on Thursday, October 3, Eastern Time, citing sources familiar with the matter, that Tesla has launched its largest-ever battery project to simultaneously develop four new proprietary batteries, planned for release in 2026 to power the electric truck Cybertruck, the upcoming autonomous taxi Robotaxi, and other electric vehicles.

Four years ago in September 2020, Tesla introduced the 4690 battery model, aiming to create a battery that improves energy density while reducing costs. CEO Elon Musk stated that this battery would enable Tesla to produce an affordable electric car priced at just $25,000. Tesla later mentioned that increasing the production of 4680 batteries is key to reducing the overall cost of the company's products.

However, The Information's report on Thursday mentioned that the development of the 4680 battery has encountered difficulties: Tesla has experienced a 70% to 80% loss of cathodes during trial production. Cathodes, like anodes, are a crucial part of the battery, acting as lithium-ion catchers. In contrast, top traditional battery manufacturers experience less than 2% loss of batteries and components due to manufacturing defects.

Tesla is working on producing the second-generation 4680 battery, known as 4680D, which utilizes a dry electrode coating process to manufacture cathodes. This process allows for the incorporation of more active battery materials, increasing energy storage by five times and power by six times, thereby improving battery range and power while reducing charging time. Musk stated that this process would reduce battery manufacturing costs by 15% and decrease the use of toxic chemicals. In July of this year, a breakthrough was achieved with the adoption of this innovative process in the 4680 battery: Tesla used its self-developed dry cathode 4680 battery for the first time in the Cybertruck.

Despite the lower yield of the dry cathode 4680D, Tesla is pushing forward with the production of this battery, aiming to increase the yield to 90% by the end of this year and achieve mass production by the second quarter of 2025. By next year, Tesla aims to produce 2,000 to 3,000 Cybertrucks equipped with 4680D batteries per week, more than double the current production of Cybertrucks using 4680 batteries.

The report mentioned that among the four follow-up versions of the dry cathode 4680D batteries planned for release by Tesla in 2026, one with the internal codename NC05, known as the "workhorse," will be used for the Robotaxi. Musk intends to unveil this battery when officially launching the Robotaxi next week. In addition, the batteries with codenames NC20 will be used for SUVs, Cybertrucks, and other models, while NC30 and NC50 will be Tesla's first batteries to use silicon-carbon materials in the anode. NC30 will be used for Cybertruck and a sedan, while NC50 will be used for smaller, performance-focused vehicles, including the next generation Roadster If the news is true, based on the planned release time of the new battery mentioned above, Robotaxi will not be on the market until at least 2026.

Reports suggest that Tesla hopes that more vertical integration will enable the company to customize electric vehicles, differentiating itself from competitors. Producing a series of different and cheaper new batteries can allow Tesla to supply different types of vehicles in the future, and self-developed electric vehicle batteries give Tesla more flexibility in designing cars.

From this perspective, producing self-developed batteries is similar to Apple creating self-developed chips specifically for the iPhone.

Currently, most of Tesla's electric vehicle batteries are purchased externally, mainly from CATL in China, Panasonic in Japan, and LG Energy in South Korea. Last year, Tesla introduced a 4680 model that relies on traditional battery technology in some versions of the Model Y and Cybertruck. Due to the lower sales volume of these versions, Tesla's own battery production is also limited. Because the battery production is not enough to meet the demand for vehicle models, Tesla's self-developed batteries are currently only used in the Cybertruck