Air Energy

Table of Contents

⚠ Disclaimer: This entry may be incomplete, out of date, or inaccurate. It is AI-maintained on a best-effort basis. Do not rely on it as a sole source — verify claims independently using the sources listed below.

Summary

Air Energy, Inc. is a Chicago-based Public Benefit Corporation developing solid-state lithium-air batteries, spun out of DOE ARPA-E-funded research at the Illinois Institute of Technology and Argonne National Laboratory. The company is commercializing a ceramic-polymer composite solid electrolyte technology that enables a four-electron lithium-oxide reaction pathway, targeting energy-density-critical, weight-sensitive applications — electric aviation, long-endurance drones, autonomous maritime and aerial systems, and resilient backup power — rather than mainstream EVs or grid storage. The company closed an oversubscribed seed funding round in June 2026.

Key Facts

Founded: 2024, Chicago, IL
Type: Company (Public Benefit Corporation)
Status: Seed-stage (oversubscribed round closed June 2026); pre-commercial, pilot manufacturing targeted for 2027
Key metric(s): 1,000 Wh/kg demonstrated at the cell level with 1,000 capacity-limited charge-discharge cycles (DOE ARPA-E JOULES-1K Phase 1); ~700 Wh/kg current pack-level energy density including air-management balance of plant
Technology: Solid-state lithium-air (lithium-oxygen); ceramic-polyethylene oxide composite electrolyte enabling a four-electron reduction/oxidation reaction that forms lithium oxide (Li₂O)

What It Is / How It Works

Air Energy’s core technology traces to research led by Mohammad Asadi at the Illinois Institute of Technology’s Electrochemical Energy Materials & Devices Lab (e2MDL), in collaboration with Larry Curtiss, an Argonne Distinguished Fellow and longtime senior investigator at the DOE’s Joint Center for Energy Storage Research. Rather than the liquid electrolyte used in most lithium-air research to date, Air Energy’s cell uses a solid ceramic-polymer composite electrolyte. According to Asadi, this solid electrolyte enables a four-electron reduction-oxidation reaction that forms and decomposes lithium oxide (Li₂O), in contrast to the one- or two-electron pathways (forming lithium superoxide or lithium peroxide, respectively) that dominate conventional non-aqueous lithium-air chemistry and are the primary cause of cathode pore clogging, short cycle life, and poor rate performance in earlier designs. The solid electrolyte is also inherently non-flammable and is designed to physically deter lithium dendrite formation, addressing the safety failure mode common to lithium-metal-anode batteries generally.

The company is developing its technology under the U.S. Department of Energy’s ARPA-E JOULES-1K program, alongside the Illinois Institute of Technology (lead), the National Laboratory of the Rockies, and RTX Technology Research Center. Phase 1 of the program ($1.5 million) demonstrated 1,000 Wh/kg at the cell level and 1,000 capacity-limited charge-discharge cycles. A $3.2 million Phase 2 contract — one of six awarded under the program in January 2026 — funds a two-year effort to build prototype pouch cells and conduct drone flight tests. Including the balance of plant required at the pack level to manage airflow into and out of the cells, Air Energy’s disclosed pack-level energy density is currently around 700 Wh/kg, with a Phase 2 target of 1,000 Wh/kg pack-level and a longer-term roadmap toward 2,000 Wh/kg.

Air Energy is pursuing a design-for-manufacturing approach intended to be compatible with conventional roll-to-roll battery manufacturing equipment, rather than requiring a bespoke production process. The company is evaluating a pilot production line in Chicago, potentially at the MxD National Center for Cybersecurity in Manufacturing, targeted to begin in 2027. Target applications are explicitly weight- and endurance-critical rather than cost- or power-critical: electric regional aviation, long-range cargo and surveillance drones, autonomous maritime systems, persistent aerial communications platforms, and resilient backup power for critical infrastructure and AI data centers.

Notable Developments

2026-07 (announced; press release dated 2026-06-26): Air Energy closes an oversubscribed seed funding round led by Resolute Venture Partners — an early investor in Tesla and SpaceX — with participation from Illinois INVENT, Illinois Tech, Evergreen Climate Innovations, and Leslie Ventures, LLC (led by Mark Leslie, founder and former CEO of Veritas Technologies). The round was initiated by Leslie Ventures. Proceeds are earmarked for expanding the engineering team, advancing solid-state manufacturing processes from lab-scale to R&D pilot production, and supporting prototype integration with government and commercial partners.
2026-06: Aviation Week reports Air Energy and Illinois Tech were awarded a $3.2 million Phase 2 ARPA-E JOULES-1K contract (one of six awarded in January 2026), partnered with the National Laboratory of the Rockies and RTX Technology Research Center, for a two-year program to develop prototype pouch cells and conduct drone flight tests.
2025 (Phase 1 completion): The Illinois Tech-led JOULES-1K Phase 1 project ($1.5 million) demonstrates 1,000 Wh/kg at the cell level and 1,000 capacity-limited charge-discharge cycles, validating the underlying solid-state lithium-air chemistry ahead of Air Energy’s seed raise.
2024: Air Energy, Inc. is founded in Chicago by Benjamin Drake (CEO), Mohammad Asadi (CTO), and Larry Curtiss (CSO) as a Public Benefit Corporation to commercialize the Asadi/Curtiss solid-state lithium-air research.

Key People

Benjamin Drake — Co-Founder and CEO LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamin-drake-88922422/ 20+ years of experience spanning national security, emerging technology, and commercialization. Previously an executive at Workhorse (electric vehicle manufacturer); led energy resilience for the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy; served as emerging technology lead on the Secretary of Defense’s strategy team; held roles at NASA, the U.S. Department of State, and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Former Presidential Management Fellow and U.S. Navy Reserve S&T Officer. B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering, Michigan State University; M.S. in Energy Engineering, University of Illinois Chicago; Space Systems certificate, Naval Postgraduate School; University of Chicago Booth Executive Finance Program alum.

Mohammad Asadi, PhD — Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mohammad-asadi-ph-d-37a73151/ Associate Professor in the Chemical Engineering Department at Illinois Institute of Technology, where he leads the Electrochemical Energy Materials & Devices Lab (e2MDL). Over a decade of experience in next-generation battery research, including the solid-state lithium-air breakthrough underlying Air Energy’s technology. Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Illinois Chicago; M.S. in Chemical Engineering, Sharif University; seven years in the oil and gas industry before joining IIT in 2017. Co-inventor on multiple lithium-air battery patents.

Larry Curtiss, PhD — Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-curtiss-635162334/ Argonne Distinguished Fellow with more than four decades in quantum science and next-generation battery research. Senior Investigator at the DOE’s Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (2012–2023); Deputy Director of the Center for Electrical Energy Storage (2019–2021). Pioneer in computational chemistry with 550+ publications and a Highly Cited Chemistry Researcher (ISI) designation; co-inventor on nine patents. Ph.D., Carnegie Mellon University. His recent research focus spans electrolyte design and charge/discharge chemistry across Li-ion, Li-O₂, and Li-S battery systems.

Strategic advisors (per company disclosure, roles not independently verified): Said Al’Hallaj (2x CEO/founder, battery manufacturing and operations); Francis Wang (former NanoGraf CEO/COO; IIT board, battery manufacturing); Ozge Guney Altay, PhD (former CEO/founder, operations executive); Melvin Flowers (strategic ventures, global people leader); Scott Daniel (founder/managing director, corporate and investment banking).

People — Last Reviewed: 2026-07-12

Claim Verification

Claim: 1,000 Wh/kg at the cell level with 1,000 capacity-limited charge-discharge cycles (DOE ARPA-E JOULES-1K Phase 1)

Status: Verified. Reported directly by Aviation Week based on an interview with company co-founder Mohammad Asadi, in the context of a named, publicly documented DOE ARPA-E program (JOULES-1K) with an identified government funding amount ($1.5 million) and named academic/industry partners (Illinois Institute of Technology, National Laboratory of the Rockies, RTX Technology Research Center).

Supporting sources: Aviation Week

Summary: Well-corroborated by a specific, government-funded program with named partners and a named journalist interview — one of the stronger-sourced technical claims in this research section for an early-stage company.

Claim: “Highest projected energy density battery of any next generation battery” (Larry Curtiss, company statement)

Status: Unverified — marketing/superlative framing, not an independently checkable technical claim. No comparative benchmarking data against other next-generation chemistries (e.g., lithium-metal solid-state, lithium-sulfur) was provided alongside this statement.

Supporting sources: National Law Review / EIN Presswire

Summary: Treat as company positioning language rather than a verified technical superlative.

Claim: ~700 Wh/kg current pack-level energy density (including air-management balance of plant)

Status: Partially verified. Company-disclosed figure via a direct, named interview (Aviation Week/Asadi), rather than a generic press release — a relatively credible single source, but not yet independently confirmed by a third party or test lab.