QuantumScape goes public (2020)
QuantumScape, a solid-state battery startup backed by Volkswagen and Bill Gates, went public through a SPAC. Its stock spiked above $130, valuing the firm near $50 billion before it had shipped a single commercial cell.
Shares fell below $10 within a year as investors saw production was years away.
By the mid-2020s QuantumScape was sending sample cells to carmakers but still had no mass-market product.
Factorial takes the same SPAC route with similar promises. QuantumScape shows how fast enthusiasm fades when factories lag the science.
