Ultracapacitors

San Francisco's Aura Aerospace is working on a remarkably odd idea: replacing batteries in electric VTOL air taxis with high-powered "Powercell" ultracapacitors capable of massive power output and 10-minute charging, in long-range hybrid setups.

Researchers at the Queensland University of Technology have added another hybrid supercapacitor design to the mix, promising the near-instant charge and discharge of a supercap with vastly improved energy storage on par with NiMH batteries.

We got it wrong, folks. The Superbattery from Skeleton Technologies is not a hybrid battery/ultracapacitor energy system, it's an entire new type of cell that sits somewhere in between the two. And it will make it into EVs – just not how we expected.

Estonia's Skeleton Technologies and Germany's Karlsruhe Institute of Technology have partnered up to complete development on what they're calling the SuperBattery for EVs – "a groundbreaking graphene battery with a 15-second charging time."

This sweet-looking electric motorcycle has a relatively small, lightweight 9-kWh battery, and yet it boasts a 300-km (186-mi) urban range and superbike-level acceleration thanks to an ultracapacitor hybrid system unlike anything we've seen before.

Charging almost instantly and offering massive power density, Nawa's innovative ultracapacitors are ready to make a mark across industries from automotive to power tools and aviation. And after raising more than US$10 million, this French company is going into mass production.