Redwood Materials is developing a closed-loop supply chain for lithium-ion batteries, localizing a 50,000-mile global supply chain on a single site. The company recycles end-of-life batteries from consumer electronics and electric vehicles, recovering over 95% of critical minerals like nickel, cobalt, lithium and copper. These recycled materials are then sold to U.S. battery manufacturers to produce new EV batteries and energy storage products.

Founded in 2017 by JB Straubel, co-founder and former CTO of Tesla, Redwood aims to reduce battery costs, curtail mining and shipping emissions, and decrease reliance on overseas supply chains. Straubel has long argued for a closed-loop system to reduce these costs and impacts. CFO Andrew Stevenson previously led special projects at Tesla. With facilities in Nevada near Tesla's Gigafactory, Redwood has partnered with Panasonic, Amazon, Ford, Toyota, and Volkswagen to recycle batteries and electronics.

Redwood plans to produce 100 GWh of battery materials annually by 2025, enough for 1 million EVs, and reach 500 GWh by 2030. The company is constructing a new 500-acre factory in South Carolina to scale operations. Redwood has raised over $1 billion to date, including a $700 million Series C in 2021 at a $3.7 billion valuation from investors like Goldman Sachs, T. Rowe Price, and Ford. Joining Redwood offers the chance to work on the frontier of sustainable battery production and help build a key piece of the domestic EV supply chain. The company will need to continue innovating to outcompete mining as a source of lithium and navigate partnerships in a dynamic industry.