From research to real-world innovation: Building the next generation of battery technology

Dr. Ravindra Kempaiah’s journey towards battery innovation started with an 8,200-kilometre expedition on an electric bicycle. “For the cost of a Tim Horton’s coffee, I crisscrossed the United States. It was very clear in my mind that this technology was going to be the future,” said Kempaiah. 

After earning a bachelor’s degree in technology and a master’s in nanotechnology from the National Institute of Technology in India, followed by a PhD from the University of Illinois, he followed his hunch. As a postdoctoral fellow at Dalhousie University, he studied the development and commercialization of long-lifetime lithium-ion batteries for light electric vehicles.   

By working with Dalhousie’s Dr. Jeff Dhan — one of the pioneering developers of the lithium-ion battery technology used today — Dr. Kempaiah propelled his academic expertise and experience to launch a company.  

With support from the Mitacs Accelerate Entrepreneur program, Dr. Kempaiah founded Zen Energy in 2021, a Dartmouth, Nova Scotia-based company innovating and commercializing long-lifetime batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage systems.  

“Mitacs gave me freedom to explore how to make the most impact. My experience in Canada was extremely critical in developing my research skills because I got to firsthand see what cutting edge really looks like.”

Dr. Ravindra Kempaiah

Dr. Kempaiah is now developing digital AI twins that can track battery performance to improve design, adaptability, and reliability. The technology is being developed within Canada but applied to global solutions to meet the growing market for battery-powered vehicles.  

Watch Dr. Kempaiah’s story and how research and entrepreneurship are coming together to power the next generation of batteries. 

Find out more: Interested in opportunities as a postdoctoral fellow with Mitacs? Explore the Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award.

About Mitacs

For over 25 years, Mitacs has helped grow the economy and develop the workforce of tomorrow, connecting industry with academia and global partners to solve real-world challenges. We support business-academic research collaboration through internships, co-funded with businesses, for undergraduate to graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.  

As a national innovation connector, Mitacs takes a talent-first approach to strengthen innovation capacity and drive global competitiveness. We serve as an essential research-commercialization bridge, accelerating market entry and growth for new products and services.  

This is a critical time for Canada to think big and take bold action. Mitacs is ready to help build a strong and resilient Canadian economy, powered by ideas, talent and innovation.  

Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon.