AeroVironment Purchases Amprius Drone Batteries

DRONELIFE first heard about Amprius Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: AMPX) at Commercial UAV Expo last year.  Amprius has an answer to one of the most persistent problems in drone technology: flight endurance and battery life.  Amprius manufactures next-generation lightweight lithium-ion batteries with its Silicon Anode Platform.  The company’s proprietary anode technology  enables the production of battery cells with energy density levels approaching twice the performance of current commercially available graphite cells.

The company has had a big win, providing a commercial level shipment of Amprius drone batteries to AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV) for the Switchblade 300 Block 20 loitering missile system.  Also called the “suicide drone,” the Switchblade 300 could prove the case for putting Amprius batteries in more commercial drone platforms.

The Amprius lightweight, high energy density lithium-ion battery cells are expected to increase the flight time of the…