China Holds the Commanding Heights in Advanced Batteries

Step aside, Tesla and QuantumScape

The NIO ET7, the flagship sedan for the Chinese electric car manufacturer, during its launch ceremony in Chengdu, in China’s southwest Sichuan province. Photo: STR/AFP/China OUT/Getty Images

For a good part of last year, lithium-ion batteries attracted perhaps more fanatical attention than at any time since their invention four decades ago. From Wall Street to Omaha, people parsed the latest battery advances by Tesla, a Silicon Valley startup called QuantumScape, and legacy players like GM. Some of…