Can a Battery Guru Right the EV Ship at GM? [Video]

The General Motors EV program is in turmoil, with the company announcing delays to previously announced rollouts of important new battery-powered vehicles while churning through executive leadership. GM’s most recent chief technical officer, Gil Golan, resigned in October after a month on the job. Before him was Kent Helfrich, who replaced Matt Tsien in 2021.

The company’s first step to getting its Ultium battery and electric drive program back on track is the announced hiring of Kurt Kelty from battery materials company Sila Nanotechnologies as GM’s vice president of battery. He has his work cut out for him.

Who Is This Guy?

Kelty built his credentials as Tesla’s director of battery technology from 2006 until 2017, where he oversaw battery cell selection, supplier contracts, and quality control. He also led the partnerships and materials sourcing for Tesla’s Nevada Gigafactory battery plant. That included planning, building, and managing what he says was the world’s largest …