Melbourne battery tech hopeful raises $850k in funding round led by Artesian

Early-stage battery technology company Voltavate has raised $850,000 in its first equity round in an oversubscribed pre-seed round led by Australian investment manager Artesian.

The Melbourne headquartered early-stage company has developed a next-generation battery separator technology – an un-sexy sounding but critical component that enables greater safety, efficiency, and scalability in battery cells.

Voltavate, founded in 2023 by Amir Hooshang Taheri and Omid Javadi, uses advanced nanomaterials and a novel manufacturing integration to deliver improved performance, process compatibility, and a lower environmental footprint of energy storage systems.

And while “battery separator technology” doesn’t immediately spark the idea of dollar signs, the battery component segment is expected to be worth more than $US250 billion by 2030.

Global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company has predicted the battery separator sector will be worth more than $US35 billion annually in North America alone and require approximately $US25 billion to scale.

Designed to fund the next phase of product validation, team expansion, and strategic partnerships, Voltavate’s first equity round raised $A850,000.

The equity round was led by Artesian and attracted support from Investible and Electrifi Ventures, leading industry angels including John Wood, Christiaan Jordaan, Steven Vassiloudis – each of whom is a CEO from within Australia’s own battery sector – as well as Voltavate chairman Reza Behnam.  

“I’ve had the pleasure of working closely with Amir and Omid since the earliest days of Voltavate,” said Behnam.

“As founders, they are driven by a clear vision to improve how we store and use energy more efficiently and sustainably. They have worked tirelessly to arrive at a solution which, on every relevant dimension, outperforms current best practices.

“This oversubscribed funding event, led by Artesian, is a testament to their efforts and their potential to impact the industry.

“I look forward to working closely with Amir, Omid, and all the investors and supporters to further validate the technology and approach as we build toward industrial-scale execution.”

Voltavate is already exploring expansion opportunities across Southeast Asia.

“We’re incredibly grateful to be backed by investors and thought leaders who share our mission,” said Dr. Amir Hooshang Taheri, co-founder and CEO.

“This support gives us momentum to scale our work and deliver meaningful impact on how batteries are made and perform.”