-Focused on Enhancing Manufacturing Capabilities of GMS to Improve Performance and Lifespan of Lithium-Ion Batteries-
3DC Inc. (Headquarters: Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture; CEO: Takuma Kuroda, CSO: Hirotomo Nishihara), a company dedicated to the development, manufacture, and supply of innovative carbon materials to accelerate battery evolution, announced in January 2024 that it has raised 250 million yen in a Pre-Series A first close through a third-party allotment with ANRI Corporation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Partner: Anri Samata) and Morimatsu T&S Co.,Ltd., the Japanese subsidiary of Morimatsu International Holdings (02155.HK) (Headquarters: Motosu City, Gifu Prefecture; President: Hiroki Kawashima). This fundraising brings 3DC’s total raised capital to 680 million yen.
With the recently secured funding, we will further develop our manufacturing capabilities for Graphene MesoSponge® (GMS), a revolutionary next-generation carbon material. This initiative is designed to significantly improve the performance and extend the life of current lithium-ion batteries, marking a major step forward in battery technology.
■About 3DC Inc.
3DC is a venture company originating from Tohoku University, dedicated to developing ‘Graphene MesoSponge® (GMS)’, a new carbon material for essential energy storage and generation devices in a decarbonized society, including lithium-ion batteries, next-generation batteries, capacitors, and fuel cells.
GMS is a unique ‘three-dimensional graphene’ material, possessing a sponge-like structure with a thickness of just one carbon atom. Its most remarkable feature is its phsyical compliance, allowing it to elastically deform like rubber. 3DC is the sole developer of such a ‘deformable carbon material’ globally. Additionally, GMS’s exceptional porosity, conductivity, and corrosion resistance draw global attention as an innovative material capable of solving the trade-off problem between lifespan and performance, a long-standing challenge in carbon materials.
Professor Hirotomo Nishihara, serving as the Chief Science Officer (CSO) of 3DC and affiliated with Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), Tohoku University (Director: Professor Shin-ichi Orimo), developed GMS in 2016 after approximately 15 years of research in carbon materials. Professor Nishihara is a global leader in carbon research and was selected as one of the Asian Scientist 100 in 2020.
3DC is actively collaborating with domestic and international battery manufacturers, battery material producers, capacitor manufacturers, and automotive OEMs to demonstrate GMS’s capabilities in preparation for a full-scale market entry after 2024. The data gathered so far, especially for lithium-ion batteries, has shown advantages over existing competitive products, leading to significant interest from battery manufacturers.
Our long-term goal is to realize a society where GMS is utilized in all applications of storing and using electrical energy.
■Purpose of Fundraising
Previously, 3DC successfully raised a total of 430 million yen through seed round funding and loans from financial institutions, advancing the research and development of GMS. As a result, we saw promising developments of GMS for multiple applications, including lithium-ion batteries, prompting us to establish a full-scale manufacturing system with this new round of fundraising.
The data indicates that incorporating GMS in mass production can significantly enhance the performance and lifespan of lithium-ion batteries. 3DC is poised to fundamentally improve the capabilities of lithium-ion batteries, thereby making a significant contribution to a decarbonized society.
■Comments from Investors
<Yuta Motoshima (Principal, ANRI Corporation)>
Carbon materials are employed in nearly all commercially viable batteries today. 3DC’s GMS significantly advances the state of these essential materials. As our world increasingly embraces electrification, 3DC is positioned to become a cornerstone company, essential and active on a global scale. I believe that the widespread integration of GMS into devices all over the globe will markedly improve our world. A black powder from Tohoku is set to change the world! Let’s strive for excellence!
<Mitsuhiro Kitaoka (Managing Executive Officer, Morimatsu T&S Co.,Ltd.)>
3DC’s new carbon material ‘GMS’, created by Tohoku University, is the only carbon material capable of reversible and repetitive expansion and contraction, representing a groundbreaking material that accelerates the evolution of lithium-ion batteries. As a raw material for negative electrodes in lithium-ion batteries, there’s a strong demand from negative electrode manufacturers for early mass production and supply, highlighting its great potential and high expectations. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to be involved with GMS as a global plant engineering company.
■Comments from Takuma Kuroda (CEO, 3DC Inc.)
I am deeply grateful for the cooperation of our outstanding internal and external teams, which has allowed us to advance our business to the mass production stage within two years of our founding. The lithium-ion battery materials market is challenging, demanding high standards in performance, scale, quality, and cost. However, it’s also a market of great societal importance, essential for building a carbon-neutral society. Together with our stakeholders, we aim to establish and contribute to this challenging yet vital market.
■Join Our Team!
3DC is on the lookout for individuals eager to join us in our mission towards achieving a decarbonized society. If you’re interested, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us through the following channels:
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Recruitment Form: https://www.3dc.co.jp/recruit/
Email: info@3dc.co.jp
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/3dc-inc
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/3dcinc
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<Company Info>
Name: 3DC Inc.
Head office：Material Solutions Center 203 Laboratory, Tohoku University, 2-1-1, Katahira, Aoba Ward, Sendai City, MIyagi Prefecture
Founders：Takuma Kuroda (CEO), Hirotomo Nishihara (CSO)
Established：February, 2022
URL：https://www.3dc.co.jp/en
Main Business：Development and manufacturing of carbon materials
<Contact Info>
Web: https://www.3dc.co.jp/en/contact/
E-mail：info@3dc.co.jp
If you are interested in more information about GMS, joint research with 3DC, or an R&D job at 3DC, please feel free to contact us!!
