Zen Energy

Zen Energy (Zen) is a cleantech startup on a mission to decarbonize transportation and energy storage.

Company co-founder and CEO Ravi Kempaiah was attracted to Atlantic Canada by world-renowned battery pioneer Jeff Dahn and his research group at Dalhousie University. Dr. Dahn is one of the pioneering developers of the lithium-ion battery now used worldwide in everything from electric vehicles to mobile phones to pacemakers.

“People here may not know this, but in the U.S. if you say you're working on batteries at Dalhousie, it is like you're at the mecca of the battery research in the whole world,” says Dr. Kempaiah. “People look up to Dalhousie because of all the great work that is being done by Dr. Jeff Dahn's lab and research group here.”

Inspired by Dr. Dahn's work, Dr. Kempaiah brought together a team to create Zen Electric Bikes. The original idea was to revolutionize the e-bike market. After all, Dr. Kempaiah once held the Guinness World Record for longest journey on a motorized bicycle: 8,209.10 km over 34 days across twelve US states. It’s clearly something he has a passion for.

Advice and support from highly accomplished mentors and investors at the ACOA-funded Dal Innovates’ Lab2Market Launch program convinced Dr. Kempaiah to aim even higher. Zen is now competing in a $200 billion market to design and manufacture long-lifetime batteries for light electric vehicles (LEV), marine propulsion systems, and home energy storage. Zen’s battery quadruples the lifetime of what is currently available, providing a more sustainable and affordable solution for consumers.

The company is focusing its growth aspirations on Asia and Africa, home to 77% of the global population, nearly all of which are reliant upon two-wheeled transportation. Zen has begun pilot projects in Asia deploying two hundred of its batteries in swapping stations popular with food and cargo delivery drivers.

“Swappable batteries are similar to propane tanks. It’s just no-brainer for them because every minute is money. They can’t be waiting for a charge. They need to swap their battery out and keep going.”

Zen’s work will be bolstered by construction of a first-in-Canada battery prototyping and testing facility at Dalhousie University targeted to open in the fall of 2025. The Canadian Battery Innovation Centre (CBIC) aims to turbocharge the pace of battery research. Dr. Kempaiah says it will allow him to refine products to meet the needs of company’s investors, like Nigerian utility North South Power, which has just ordered two hundred home energy batteries to help consumers transition away from fossil fuels in emerging markets of Africa.

“Building inexpensive but longer lasting batteries for emerging markets in Asia and Africa means less waste and better sustainability,” says Dr. Kempaiah. “It’s an extremely dense market. If you can make an impact there it’s going to have a massive ripple effect everywhere else in terms of carbon emissions.”

Zen Energy is part of a growing ecosystem around batteries and energy storage that is showing promise to be transformative for the Atlantic Canadian economy.