Illumion, a university spinout that lets battery teams watch individual particles charge and discharge inside working batteries, has raised £1.7 million in a follow-on round with Foresight Group. ZEISS Ventures joins the round alongside Cambridge Enterprise Ventures, Parkwalk, Cambridge Angels and YourVC.
Battery developers usually judge new materials and cell designs from whole-cell measurements such as capacity, voltage and cycle life. Those readings show that a battery is underperforming, but rarely why, because the chemistry happens in millions of tiny particles that conventional testing cannot see while a cell is running. Illumion is commercialising charge photometry, an optical microscopy technique that acts like a window into a working battery and shows, in real time, where energy is being stored at the particle level.
illumionONE, the first product, is a laboratory platform that lets researchers observe how individual battery particles behave during charge and discharge. That gives materials scientists a direct view of effects that would otherwise only be inferred from slower, more expensive testing, helping them compare materials and find performance problems earlier. Illumion is also developing illumionX, a platform for industrial battery teams that turns those particle-level insights into faster development cycles and better quality-control decisions on new cells.
ZEISS Ventures, the venture arm of the optics and microscopy group, brings a strategic investor with deep roots in imaging to the cap table. Foresight first backed Illumion in 2024 through the Foresight Technology EIS and VCT funds and has since supported the team with board engagement, investor introductions and non-dilutive funding applications, including a successful Innovate UK Growth Catalyst grant.
The new money will fund continued commercial development, delivery of the product roadmap for illumionONE and illumionX, and work with battery researchers, cell developers and industrial partners across the battery supply chain. Mills & Reeve advised Illumion on the round, with a team led by corporate partner and Head of VC Investments Zickie Lim.
Christoph Schnedermann, Illumion's co-founder and CEO, leads the team as it moves charge photometry from academic research into tools that battery engineers can use day to day, in university labs and on industrial development lines alike.
This funding marks an important next step for Illumion as we translate world-class research into practical tools that accelerate battery innovation and development. Charge photometry gives researchers and engineers a new way to understand how battery materials behave in real time, and we are excited to continue developing our technology with the support of Foresight, ZEISS Ventures and our existing investors.
Illumion has developed a differentiated technology platform addressing an important challenge within battery research and industrial development. Since Foresight's initial investment, the team has made encouraging technical and commercial progress, and the involvement of ZEISS Ventures underlines the strategic relevance of the Company's imaging technology. We are pleased to continue supporting Christoph and the wider team through this next phase of development.
Battery technology is a key area of innovation, and advanced imaging tools can help researchers and manufacturers gain deeper insights into battery behaviour during development and testing. Illumion's has developed a differentiated approach to battery imaging, and we look forward to supporting the company as it advances its platform and engages with customers across the battery value chain.
