CDO2 and Sussex Quantum
CDO2 was founded by Dr Gary Kendall, in partnership with colleagues at the Sussex Programme for Quantum Research. They’re pushing the boundaries of quantum technology by developing new kinds of battery sensors for electric vehicles. CDO2 have been Sussex Innovation members since 2017 and have depended on securing significant grant funding during that time as they develop their innovative new technology.
The Challenge
Having previously won £455,000 in start-up funding as part of the government’s Faraday Battery Challenge, CDO2 approached us in 2020 to support their consortium’s bid for a £5.4 million grant from Innovate UK as part of the ‘Commercialising Quantum Technologies’ programme.
The team’s development of quantum sensors for electric car batteries would allow the manufacturers to gauge the charge and health of the battery without opening it up, which can be time consuming and dangerous. This technology promises to accelerate and reduce the cost of EV battery production. Gary and his colleagues were looking for help with communicating the value of their innovation in a pitch to the review panel at Innovate UK.
Our Solution
We began by carrying out market research into EV batteries, which contributed to the evidence used in the pitch document. The real difficulty lay in bringing together a variety of different collaborators, all of whom had played a different part in the process, to come together and present a coherent and persuasive pitch.
Our Head of University Services, Peter Lane, is used to acting as a “translator” between business and academia. Peter met all the partners before the pitch, to coach them on presentation technique, clarify and coordinate their message and tie together the disparate elements of the consortium. He then conducted a mock pitch and provided feedback to ensure that the finished presentation was the best it could be.
The Outcome
The pitch was a success, resulting in the £5.4 million project going ahead, including £1.1 million for CDO2 and the University of Sussex, which will now be used to invest in creating these quantum battery sensors for commercial use.
CDO2 used the funding to build a prototype quantum battery testing system in their research facility at Sussex Innovation, ready for deployment in the new wave of Gigafactories set for construction as part of the UK’s Net Zero mission.
If you’re looking to commercialise a new tech innovation, or just looking to brush up on your presentation skills, our expert team have the experience and academic connections to make that happen.
“With such a large and diverse team it was difficult to keep a coherent message in a presentation setting. Peter helped prepare us for the pitch by running a mock interview and coaching us to present in an effective way that resulted in us securing the funding.”