A New Take on Lithium Production: Our Investment in EELI Technology

As the energy transition accelerates, lithium has become the most critical bottleneck for electric vehicles, large scale energy storage systems, and next generation electrification. Global demand is expected to reach 6 million tons by 2030, yet current production methods cannot keep pace; conventional approaches such as hard rock mining and evaporation ponds require excessive water consumption, intensive chemical use, and billions of dollars in capital investment. On top of this, over 14 million tons of lithium potential in the US sits untapped because existing technologies simply cannot process it. EELI Technology offers a solution to this giant problem with a brand new approach.

EELI's Advanced Lithium Recovery (ALR) platform takes a fundamentally different approach from its competitors. Rather than relying on acids, solvents, or delicate membranes prone to clogging, it operates on the principle of electrochemical selectivity, separating specific ions using only electric current and specialized electrodes. This allows it to work with high efficiency even on low grade and complex sources that competitors cannot process. Its modular, container based design enables rapid integration into existing industrial infrastructure without requiring greenfield investment, cutting operational costs by up to 80% while tripling process efficiency.

Beyond the scale of the problem and the strength of the solution, the technical depth and credibility of the founder played a significant role in our investment decision. Dr. Mert Akin brings over a decade of expertise in electrochemical systems and mineral recovery, putting it into practice at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory through the DOE backed Activate and Cyclotron Road programs. The team has secured grant support from institutions including the DOE, NSF, and the California Energy Commission, and is now moving the technology from lab scale to the field. When the global magnitude of the problem, the differentiation of the technology, and the team's real world validation are considered together, the investment decision became clear.

We are proud to have led EELI Technology's funding round as APY Ventures. EELI Technology will use the financing to build commercial pilot systems, deploy them at customer sites, and accelerate its global scale up. We believe the company has the potential to drive lasting, transformative change in critical mineral production at a global scale, and we are delighted to be alongside Dr. Mert Akin and his team on this journey.

Investment Lead: @Şüheda Dane