Tesla has already made it clear that it's making its own 4680 battery cells, which it plans to use in Tesla Model Y crossovers coming out of its new factory in Texas. However, the US electric automaker will have to lean on other companies as it has in the past if it expects to have enough new cells to ramp up production. This is where Panasonic comes in.
Panasonic, Tesla's primary battery partner, already announced that it will be producing 4680 cells for Tesla, though it has noted that it's currently only in the testing stages, and full-scale production won't begin until next year. The company also announced that its Energy division will produce the new 4680 cylindrical lithium-ion batteries in Japan, "in order to expand its business globally."
