Andy Grove pushing Intel to manufacture electric car batteries

Former Intel chairman, Andy Grove, has been a prominent supporter of plug-in hybrid automobiles ever since he left his post at Intel. Now, in his role as Intel advisor, Grove is pushing CEO, Paul Otellini, to diversify Intel by manufacturing advanced batteries for plug-in electric vehicles. His argument is two fold: 1) the market is potentially huge (read: big profits!) as the world seems to be at an eVehicle tipping point, 2) with such little manufacturing capacity left in the US (and US automakers in deep trouble), if someone like Intel doesn't take on the challenge then the market will left be to Chinese and Japanese interests like BYD motors and the soon-to-merge Panasonic and Sanyo -- all of whom are positioning themselves to dominate the emerging battery market. While the move from silicon to battery tech might sound radical, it's worth remembering that Nokia, the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones was once a wood-pulp mill. Of course, if Intel ever perfects Tesla's its wireless power technology then this whole battery argument is moot.

[Anthony @ Dec 12th 2008 2:02AM]

monopoly i tell ya !! i swear everything should jus be free =]

[PyRo1509 @ Dec 12th 2008 3:24AM]

*slap*

^ that was free... happy?

[Blastar @ Dec 12th 2008 5:52AM]

@PyRO1509
When the Chinese batteries will have the half prize (because of the cheaper working hands)
with the "same quality and standards" of the American ones...
Then you ll see that the American companies will prefer buying the Chinese ones instead the "homeland" ones.. and the reason is very obvious..
They ll pay less and so the final costumers that will prefer their products for the same reason.
Except if you got Money to burn so no problem with that, only that the most of the people prefer not to spend much even when they a lot of money.
I know it doesn't sound good but that's the truth.. even if you like
it or not.
and what happens in your country happens all around the world.
That's the what we use to refer as "open market".

When you ll see this happening then you might take that slap back.

[PyRo1509 @ Dec 12th 2008 9:34AM]

so let me get this right....
I slap someone....
and then you just start saying
"BLAH BLAH BLAH"

[Ethan @ Dec 12th 2008 11:35AM]

Well they are the star of bla.

[Blastar @ Dec 12th 2008 1:41PM]

I think I made a point and there are many people than can do that.
Apparently you don't have the ability to understand the content of it, that's why it sounds like
blabla to you.
Now go back to your room kido and do something more creative than giving digital slaps.

[Paul @ Dec 15th 2008 9:40PM]

That free idea sounds alot like communism.... it's a good theory but implementation has proven to be a bit of bitch...

[Technophile @ Dec 12th 2008 2:08AM]

A123 Systems in Watertown, MA already is working on this stuff...

They have a Prius battery package out now that theoretically increases city MPG to upwards of 120..

Crazy man!

[Mr. S. @ Dec 12th 2008 2:12AM]

I'm very happy to hear this. I'd give him one of the cup cakes I just baked as a reward, but he's not here so I'll eat them all and then cry myself to sleep after play some WoW.

[who? @ Dec 12th 2008 2:16AM]

At least you aren't playing MoM...

[Shaka @ Dec 12th 2008 3:08AM]

O RLY?

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w103/tashacg725/Birthday/BirthdayKittyCupcake.jpg

[Hbishop @ Dec 12th 2008 2:19AM]

Sounds like a good idea. However, lets be real about job creation. It takes alot of arm pulling for intel to get approval to build chip Fab in the USA...Imagine a Battery plant that produces and utilizes some of the most toxic chemicals known to man? Hate to bring reality into the mix.....just saying, ya know.

[Quy Le @ Dec 12th 2008 2:21AM]

Another company to note is IBM who use to specialize in meat cleavers.

[cory yalowicki @ Dec 12th 2008 5:43AM]

Care to cite your sources? I just looked that up and i didnt see any references to "meat cleavers"

[absinthe party @ Dec 12th 2008 7:41AM]

IBM used to make the punch card system used in Nazi concentration camps. That's where the numbers tattooed on captives arms came from. Annnd, I'm completely serious.

[Johan S @ Dec 12th 2008 2:44AM]

Actually Intel would be great for this, they have lots of scientists and engineers dealing with advanced materials and their electrical characteristics.

[Samboini @ Dec 12th 2008 4:19AM]

Nokia should take heed; they are already up there in the battery technology stakes. I wouldn't imagine it being particularly difficult to migrate some of their focus to this area.

[Shaka @ Dec 12th 2008 3:04AM]

I would rather have it left be to intel than to risk exploding car batteries from the likes of Sony. I know they aren't listed but it is a possibility.

[avis @ Dec 12th 2008 3:18AM]

Will we see Moore's Law here too?

[Alexjimi12 @ Dec 12th 2008 3:28AM]

Intel would be out of their minds to turn this opportunity down.

[Oli D @ Dec 12th 2008 4:49AM]

Yeah a small startup chipset company has been searching for this sort of opurtunity for decades, they don't care about being top of the CPU game, they want to rule the battery world!

[Nick @ Dec 12th 2008 4:20AM]

Maybe they should just engineer a whole damn car.

[eigenvalue @ Dec 12th 2008 6:03AM]

The first Nokia product I remember seeing were my Finnish grandfather's rubber boots.

[Rudia Plaga @ Dec 12th 2008 6:23AM]

The e vehicle is an idea who's time has come. Unfortunately the oil industry will never allow it. They are determined to destroy the world and everybody in it, as long as they get their cash

[Oli D @ Dec 12th 2008 7:02AM]

Your wrong, they want to harvest all the money they can in the easiest way they can, which is what they do. Its just so happens that this also damages the environment.

What car do you drive?
If the answer is anything other than i don't your playing right into their hands

[Rudia Plaga @ Dec 12th 2008 9:19AM]

I don't drive any car, I never have. I've never even had a drivers Licence. I'm born and live in Manahattan. But the main reason I don't get a licence is all the DMV's in NYC have thousands of people in the them every day, and for me it's just not worth waiting in the place for 5 or 6 hours. If I lived in a place where I had to have a car, I would drive. I still say the oil industry is the root of most evil in the world. Oil executives would sell their own children into slavery if you gave them enough money.

[steven @ Dec 12th 2008 11:41PM]

LOL... Are you serious? You do know that AMERICANS have stock in oil companies, right?

[Brian @ Dec 12th 2008 9:51AM]

Yes! Do it Intel! I want Intel in my electric car!

[Labrador @ Dec 12th 2008 10:11AM]

I'm all for Intel researching and licensing battery technology, but there's no way an American company can compete in the manufacturing of batteries.

[rcappo @ Dec 12th 2008 11:01AM]

They need to be able to make a 144-156V, 200-300 Amp/hour battery pack for less than $2000. If it can last for more than 10 years (350 charge cycles a year), then they will be able to sell a lot of them.

They need to talk to the researchers at Los Alamos about using the nuclear waste/carbon nanotube/Lithium ion battery design. If all of the radiation can be turned into power, powerful enough for a car and house, but not powerful enough for nuclear power plants...It would be great and would not need recharging, and can go any distance. It would put the oil and power companies out of business in 20 years though.

[theflew @ Dec 12th 2008 1:49PM]

They probably can complete since making batteries doesn't require a lot of people. If all Intel would do is make the batteries and not the finished packs then manufacturing cost wouldn't differ that much.

[engadget.mlc @ Dec 12th 2008 11:06AM]

What, no "F00F... Crash!" jokes?

lame.

[Nate @ Dec 12th 2008 11:15AM]

With gas prices below $2? I'll sell my stock now.

[Tom Witkin @ Dec 21st 2008 11:52AM]

It’s not clear that science and technology analogous to what drives Moore’s law could enable the same success in the chemistry and manufacturing of car batteries. And, the business process behind getting semiconductors designed into a car, then producing and delivering them, strikes me as quite different from what it takes to establish the relationship between a car company and a firm making batteries that provide the fundamental umph behind the vehicles.

http://tomwitkin.wordpress.com/2008/12/17/intel-inside-your-car/

[Rudia Plaga @ Feb 11th 2009 10:26AM]

America is finished. China will rule the world for a thousand years.