Are QS' Expanding OEM Partnerships Gaining Real Traction?

Solid state EV battery innovator QuantumScape Corp. QS has again checked off one of its most important goals for 2025— expanding commercial engagement with customers and partners.

The company recently announced it has signed a new joint development agreement (JDA) with a top-10 global automaker, marking the final major milestone in its commercial roadmap for the year.This matters because commercial engagement has long been a key question around QuantumScape’s solid-state battery technology. The company has spent years proving performance in the lab. In 2025, it focused on turning that technical progress into deeper relationships with automakers willing to commit resources and development time. The new JDA shows that interest in QS’ technology continues to broaden beyond its earliest partners, including Volkswagen VWAGY.

The agreement also caps a year of solid progress. Over the past 12 months, QuantumScape has expanded its collaboration and licensing deal with Volkswagen’s PowerCo, signed JDAs with two major global automakers, and initiated a technology evaluation agreement with another large OEM. These steps suggest that multiple automakers are now at different stages of engagement, from early evaluation to deeper joint development.

QuantumScape has also been building out its broader ecosystem. The company has inked agreements with Murata Manufacturing and Corning to develop high-volume ceramic separator production—a critical component of its solid-state design. These partnerships support QS’ capital-light strategy by relying on established manufacturing experts rather than building everything in-house.

Management described 2025 as a “banner year.” It’s creating a layered commercial pipeline that includes licensing, joint development and technology validation. With multiple OEMs now actively involved, QuantumScape enters 2026 with growing industry validation.

Competitive Context

Solid Power’s SLDP commercial progress is built around long-term relationships with established automakers. The company continues to work closely with BMW and Ford on developing all-solid-state battery technology, supplying electrolyte materials and prototype cells for evaluation. In addition, Solid Power has partnered with SK On to support pilot-scale cell production, reinforcing its focus on deep, manufacturing-linked OEM collaborations.

SES AI’s SES automaker engagement centers on development partnerships rather than large-scale manufacturing. Early this year, SES signed contracts worth up to $10 million with two major global automotive OEM partners to apply its AI-for-Science platform to develop new electrolyte materials for lithium-metal and lithium-ion batteries used in EVs. These relationships often involve joint research, testing, and software-driven materials optimization, reflecting SES’ strategy of combining battery innovation with AI platforms rather than building production infrastructure.

The Zacks Rundown on QuantumScape

Shares of QS have jumped around 145% over the past six months, handily outperforming the industry.  

QuantumScape currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 3.64 on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 11 brokerage firms.

See how the Zacks Consensus Estimate for QS’ earnings has been revised over the past 90 days.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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