July 17, 2024 -- Quantonation, the leading early-stage investment fund dedicated to quantum technologies, is pleased to announce an investment through its fund Quantonation II in Pioniq Technologies, a Paris-based ESPCI and CNRS spin-off.

Following years of research in the science of quantum materials, Pioniq introduces a novel class of lithium-free, cobalt-free, and nickel-free solid-state energy storage devices. These devices leverage properties of quantum matter at room temperature and consist of abundant, recyclable, and cost-stable chemical elements. This innovative approach sets Pioniq apart from existing energy storage technologies plagued with environmental and supply issues.

The pre-seed round subscribed by Quantonation will allow Pioniq Technologies to finalize the synthesis pathway for its current materials, explore and optimize new combinations, and start working on product integration, particularly for IoT and electronics as a first step. The investment from Quantonation will empower Pioniq Technologies to bring the first chips to the market, while keeping on researching innovative energy materials using quantum simulation.

Quantum materials are materials that exhibit remarkable macroscopic properties resulting from quantum correlations at the microscopic level. These properties can’t be described by classical or simple semi-classical approaches and require a dedicated treatment of quantum mechanical effects, making them challenging to explore numerically. However, recent developments in the field of solid matter properties simulation, especially those leveraging GPUs and quantum processors, show great prospects for computational design of innovative materials.

Christophe Jurczak, Managing Partner at Quantonation, commented: “There is a huge community of academics worldwide working in the field of quantum materials. Applications are extremely promising in principle, but there have been challenges with synthesis and modeling. Pioniq Technologies is one of the very first companies bringing quantum materials to markets, and we’re looking forward to supporting them in this exciting journey!”

Brigitte Leridon, founder and CEO added: “Quantonation’s investment is a strong endorsement of our vision and of our technology. We are delighted to partner with Quantonation, a one-of-a-kind investor, and we’re looking forward to the collaboration opportunities with their portfolio in the quantum computing space, an integral part of our strategy. We are excited to take the next step in offering safe, integration-ready, and sustainable electrical energy storage technology to the markets.”