GM Ventures Leads $108M Series B in Peak Energy, the Sodium-Ion Battery Startup Targeting Data Centers

Peak Energy, the Burlingame, California startup building passively cooled sodium-ion batteries for the power grid, has closed an oversubscribed $108 million Series B. The round was led by General Motors Ventures, with Maverick Silicon, Infinite Capital, Eclipse, Xora Innovation and LG Technology Ventures joining.

The company says the money will help it scale manufacturing in the United States, fulfil more than $1 billion in existing customer orders, and launch its product into the data center market, where access to power has become the main limit on growth.

A cheaper, simpler battery Most grid batteries today use lithium-ion cells and need active cooling systems to stay safe. Peak's approach uses sodium-ion chemistry, built on abundant materials, in a system that is cooled passively, with no air conditioning or liquid cooling loops. The company says this design can cut the cost of energy by up to 20% compared with conventional storage, with zero planned maintenance and a longer operating life.

"Peak's mission from day one has been to lower the cost of energy through safer, simpler, cleaner, and more reliable technology," said Landon Mossburg, Peak Energy's co-founder and CEO.

GM goes deeper The round builds on a partnership announced in June, under which General Motors and Peak will jointly develop next-generation sodium-ion cells for energy storage, drawing on GM's U.S. battery manufacturing experience. In July, Peak unveiled a 4 GWh factory in Sacramento, California, which is set to start production in the first quarter of 2027.

"GM Ventures is investing to help Peak Energy continue to scale this innovative technology because we believe it has significant potential in the energy storage market as a safe, cost-effective solution using abundant, domestically sourced materials," said Kevin McCabe, president of GM Ventures.

Why it matters The AI boom is pushing data centers to find more power, faster. Investors are betting that storage will be a big part of the answer. "It became clear that energy storage is going to be an increasingly important part of the solution," said Kenneth Safar, managing director at Maverick Silicon.

For founders, Peak is a reminder that hardware and energy startups can still raise large rounds when they pair new technology with real customer demand. In about three years, the company has gone from concept to more than $1 billion in commitments.

Source: Peak Energy announcement via PR Newswire, October 21, 2026. Photo (illustrative battery storage container): Yan lance / Wikimedia Commons, CC0