LeydenJar wins Peter Wennink Tech Award for battery technology
Nominees show the potential of the technological industry and the importance of scaling up to production.
Published on May 30, 2026
Team IO+ selects and features the most important news stories on innovation and technology, carefully curated by our editors.
LeydenJar has won the Peter Wennink Tech Award 2026, an FME prize for technological breakthroughs with economic and societal impact in sectors working on solutions to major challenges. The award was presented by jury chair and former ASML CEO Peter Wennink during FME’s 75th anniversary celebration at the Louwman Museum in The Hague.
LeydenJar develops silicon anodes for lithium-ion batteries, which can increase energy density by 50 to 70 percent. That makes batteries more powerful, faster to charge and more sustainable, with great potential for applications in electric mobility and energy storage.
The deeptech scale-up belongs to a select group of players worldwide that commercially apply pure silicon in battery anodes, giving it a strong position in the development of European battery and energy storage technology. The company emerged from TNO research and is based at the Leiden Bio Science Park and in Eindhoven.
Impact
“Innovation is about the step from idea to application and ultimately to impact,” said Peter Wennink. “LeydenJar translates fundamental research into an industrial application with strong market potential and a great appeal to talent. In a battery market that is growing rapidly due to electrification, innovations of this type make the difference and strengthen the earning capacity and technological position of the Netherlands and Europe.”
“This prize is a wonderful recognition of the work of our team and the potential of our technology,” responded Christian Rood, CEO and co-founder of LeydenJar. “With the opening of our first commercial factory in Eindhoven, we are taking the next step towards scaling up, so that we can enable a new generation of AI-driven devices. In doing so, we show that Dutch deeptech offers new opportunities in battery technology in addition to semicon.”
Prosperity
“Technology determines, among other things, today’s energy supply, mobility, security and economic strength, and forms the foundation of our prosperity of tomorrow,” said Theo Henrar, chair of FME. “The nominees show that the Netherlands can develop and apply world-class technology. Countries that develop and produce technology determine their economic and geopolitical position. That requires continued investment in scaling up and technical talent.”
In addition to LeydenJar, AQUABATTERY and PAL-V were nominated. AQUABATTERY develops technology for large-scale energy storage in saltwater solutions, as an alternative to scarce raw materials. PAL-V is working on the first certified flying car, thereby creating a new mobility category for applications where speed and accessibility are essential.
The Peter Wennink Tech Award was launched in 2024 and was awarded at the time to its namesake himself, in recognition of his enormous contribution to the technological industry in the Netherlands.