SES AI and Top Material Announce Plans to Boost Cell Manufacturing Capacity in Korea for Drone Applications

Key Terms

li-metal technical

Lithium metal is the elemental form of lithium used as a lightweight, highly reactive material in batteries and specialty industrial applications. It matters to investors because batteries that use lithium metal can store more energy in the same size or weight—like swapping a small fuel tank for a bigger one—potentially boosting electric vehicle range and lowering costs, which affects manufacturers, raw-material suppliers and the broader clean-energy supply chain.

li-ion technical

A li-ion (lithium-ion) battery is a rechargeable energy storage cell commonly used in phones, laptops, electric vehicles and grid storage; it stores and releases electrical energy by moving lithium ions between electrodes. Investors care because these batteries drive demand for key raw materials, manufacturing capacity and recycling streams, and their cost, lifespan and safety performance directly affect product economics and company valuations — think of them as the fuel tank and supply chain backbone for many modern devices and vehicles.

gigafactory technical

A gigafactory is a very large manufacturing facility designed to produce high volumes of complex products—most commonly batteries or electric vehicle components—at industrial scale. For investors, it matters because such plants can sharply lower per-unit costs through economies of scale, speed up a company's ability to meet demand, and serve as a visible sign of growth and capital intensity; think of it as moving from a home kitchen to an automated factory line to serve a whole city.

urban air mobility technical

Urban air mobility is the emerging system of using small aircraft—often electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles and delivery drones—to move people and goods around cities. Think of it as adding a new layer of roads in the sky that could cut travel time and congestion, but it matters to investors because success depends on technology, safety, regulation, airspace rules and new infrastructure, all of which affect costs, adoption and revenue potential.

NDAA regulatory

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is an annual U.S. law that sets the budget, rules and priorities for national defense and related security programs. It matters to investors because its spending choices, procurement rules and policy measures can directly affect which companies win government contracts, face new export or equipment restrictions, or see demand shift—much like a city budget determining which contractors get hired and which projects move forward.

WOBURN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SES AI Corporation (“SES AI”) (NYSE: SES), a leader in the development and manufacturing of AI-enhanced high-performance Li-Metal and Li-ion batteries, and Top Material (KOSDAQ: 360070) a leader in advanced materials solutions and end-to-end gigafactory engineering systems for rechargeable batteries and manufacturer of next generation cathode materials in Korea, today announced plans to collaborate to boost cell manufacturing capacity in Korea for drones and urban air mobility (UAM) applications and lay the foundation for compliance with the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Located in Chungju, South Korea, SES AI’s existing factory, established in 2021, supports reliable battery manufacturing for drone applications.

This collaboration is expected to take place at SES AI’s existing factory in Chungju, South Korea, which was established in 2021 with financial support from South Korea’s central government and Chungcheongbuk-do province and the City of Chungju. The facility is notable for producing the world’s first 100Ah lithium-Metal battery for automotive applications in 2021 and 30Ah lithium-Metal battery for UAM applications in 2024.

The collaboration is expected to leverage SES AI’s AI-enhanced, high-energy density and high-power-density lithium-metal and lithium-ion battery technologies, together with Top Material’s gigafactory-scale engineering and manufacturing expertise and Korea-based material and components sourcing. The goal is to build a robust, secure, and cost-efficient battery supply chain that supports compliance with applicable NDAA country-of-origin and supply chain requirements for SES AI’s drone customers.

The collaboration, the primary terms of which have been set out in a non-binding agreement between SES AI and Top Material, is subject to the negotiation and execution of a definitive agreement between the parties, which is targeted for Q1 2026.

“We have operated our Chungju, South Korea facility since 2021 and have worked closely with Top Material on multiple programs over the past several years. They are a trusted and proven partner to help us as we continue to scale our manufacturing capacity to support growing demand across drones and advanced mobility applications,” said Qichao Hu, Founder and CEO of SES AI.

“We are thrilled that SES AI, with its outstanding battery design technology, and Top Material, with its accumulated battery manufacturing expertise, are collaborating to establish a battery production base for drones in Korea. We hope to further expand this partnership in the future and jointly challenge the global market,” said Whan Jin Roh, founder and CEO of Top Material.

About SES AI:

SES AI Corp. (NYSE: SES) is powering the future of global electric transportation on land and in the air with the world’s most advanced Li-Metal batteries. SES AI is the first battery company in the world to accelerate its pace of innovation by utilizing superintelligent AI across the spectrum of its business, from research and development; materials sourcing; cell design; engineering and manufacturing; to battery health and safety monitoring. Founded in 2012, SES AI is an Li-Metal battery developer and manufacturer headquartered in Boston and with operations in Singapore, Shanghai, and Seoul. Learn more at SES.AI.

About Top Material:

Starting as a cell manufacturer, Top Material can provide top quality electrode fabrication service to customers around the world. With our state-of-the-art technique, we can provide products from various materials such as LFP and NMC. We focus our research on cathode active material to create a next generation battery. We can fabricate the cell down from active materials up to cell performance testing. Always feel free to contact us or visit our website, https://www.topmaterial.co.kr/en/ for more information.

SES AI may use its website as a distribution channel of material company information. Financial and other important information regarding SES AI is routinely posted on and accessible through the Company’s website at www.ses.ai. Accordingly, investors should monitor this channel, in addition to following SES AI’s press releases, Securities and Exchange Commission filings and public conference calls and webcasts.

Forward-Looking Statements

This letter contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, about us and our industry that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or our future financial or operating performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “will,” “goal,” “prioritize,” “plan,” “target,” “expect,” “focus,” “look forward,” “opportunity,” “believe,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “project” and “pursue” or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of the management of the Company. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that its plans, intentions and expectations reflected in or suggested by these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot provide assurance that it will achieve or realize these plans, intentions or expectations. Should one or more of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results or performance may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include, but are not limited to, among other things, risks related to the integration of Shenzhen UZ Energy Co. Ltd. and its related entities (“UZ Energy”) operations into the business of the Company and the integration of SES’s software into UZ Energy’s hardware, risks related to the development and commercialization of SES AI’s battery technology and the timing and achievement of expected business milestones, risks relating to the uncertainty of achieving and maintaining profitability, the ability of SES to integrate its products into electric vehicles and Urban Air Mobility, drones, energy storage systems, robotics and other applications, the risk that the market for SES AI’s AI-based services, including Molecular Universe, is still emerging, and such programs may not achieve the growth potential SES AI expects, risks related to the market demand for SES’s on-premise version of Molecular Universe, risks related to our ability to achieve increased cell production capacity at SES’s Chungju plant, risks related to SES’s joint ventures and other strategic partnerships, risks related to the elimination of, or uncertainty regarding government and economic incentives or subsidies available to us, end-users or OEMs, risks related to changes in U.S. and foreign government policy, including imposition or increase in tariffs and changes to existing trade agreements, risks related to our dependence on third parties for component and product manufacturing, risks related to the demand for our energy storage system products and other factors described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including in the “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” sections of our most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and other documents that we have filed, or that we will file, with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements made by us in this letter speak only as of the date on which they are made and subsequent events may cause these expectations to change. We disclaim any obligations to update or alter these forward-looking statements in the future, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

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Source: SES AI Corporation