As computing costs decline and connectivity improves, the number of Internet of Things (IoT) devices is projected to surge – from 18.8 billion in 2024 to over 41 billion by 2030. As more data is collected, transmitted, and used in AI models, the cost and flexibility of power remains a critical bottleneck. Most IoT devices today rely on either batteries or hardwired connections, both of which impose significant limitations.
Batteries introduce recurring maintenance demands and environmental impact. Many devices require battery replacement every three to five years, driving up long-term costs. Hardwired power, meanwhile, limits deployment flexibility and poses challenges in retrofitting existing infrastructure, particularly in older buildings and emerging markets where power access and installation flexibility are constrained.
The potential of energy harvesting technologies (such as solar, RFID, and kinetic systems) has been explored to overcome power and cost constraints and enable a battery-free IoT ecosystem. However, the trade-off between power density and cost continues to hinder widespread industrial adoption.
Today, industrial IoT applications face challenges in efficiently converting light into electricity. Traditional photovoltaic (PV) solar cells are optimized for direct solar – around 100,000 lux – and aren’t well suited for indoor environments, where light levels range from 10 to 1,000 lux.
Legacy low-light solutions, like amorphous silicon, often found in calculators, absorb a narrow spectrum of visible light, limiting their efficiency. Ambient Photonics, which spun out from the Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry, has developed next-generation dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) engineered specifically for ambient and low-light environments.
Unlike conventional materials, these DSSCs use proprietary dyes that absorb a broader range of wavelengths, enabling more efficient light harvesting. The team has designed over 40 novel molecules that collectively absorb light across the entire visible electromagnetic spectrum.
To enable cost-effective scalability, Ambient has established a highly automated manufacturing line. Using proprietary industrial printing techniques, the company deposits energy-harvesting molecules onto thin, durable glass substrates, allowing for high-volume and low-cost production.
The proprietary molecules deliver a power density that is 2X superior to other dye-sensitized solar cells and 3.5X more than amorphous silicon cells.
This increased power density makes energy harvesting very compelling for industrial IoT and consumer electronics. For industrial IoT, end customers benefit from more than just eliminating battery replacements or wiring during retrofits, they also avoid the labor and logistics costs. In smart building systems, for instance, 60% to 80% of total lifecycle cost of building systems is attributed to maintenance rather than cost of equipment.
For consumer electronics like keyboards, mice, remote controllers, consumers, Ambient Photonics power density makes energy harvesting attractive even for devices with limited surface area. Consumer electronics companies are able to offer a seamless customer experience, removing any hassle of charging or replacements.
Battery-powered devices come with environmental baggage, especially as billions of IoT devices scale globally. Ambient Photonics reduces the need for lithium-ion batteries, cutting carbon emissions by up to 87.5%. In consumer electronics alone, that’s 15–28 million metric tons of CO₂ avoided and less e-waste in landfills.
In addition, Ambient’s technology enables new and greater penetration of high-impact IoT across a wide range of industries we already understand today.
In buildings, connected HVAC and lighting systems can reduce energy consumption by 20–40%. Making retrofits easier and more cost-effective will be key to increasing adoption, particularly in emerging markets. In smart grids, real-time IoT sensors help balance supply and demand, integrate renewables, and detect inefficiencies, cutting energy use by up to 5%. In agriculture, smart irrigation and crop monitoring boost yields while reducing water and fertilizer usage. In transportation, IoT enables better route optimization and predictive maintenance, helping fleets lower fuel consumption and emissions.
By removing the power and cost barriers that have historically limited deployment, Ambient unlocks not only these existing applications but also future innovations we haven’t yet imagined.
Ambient Photonics is scaling production at its 43,000 Scotts Valley, CA. Among its list of partners, the company has collaborated with Google to develop new solar-powered devices, Chicany on wireless keyboards, and Universal Electronics on their Eterna remote control.
Recently, Lenovo’s Self-Charging Bluetooth Keyboard, featuring Ambient’s solar cells, was named one of How-To Geek’s Best of CES 2025.
Ambient Photonics brings deep domain expertise and commercial leadership in solar components and power electronics.
CEO Bates Marshall brings over 20 years of experience in the semiconductor and solar markets, including serving as Vice President and General Manager of Huawei Technologies’ North American solar inverter business.
CTO Dr. Kethinni Chittibabu is a veteran of Konarka and G24 Innovations, and later led R&D in performance materials at the Warner Babcock Institute, where he initiated the breakthrough research behind Ambient’s dye-sensitized solar cells.
“As we move away from fossil fuel power to renewable power it has helped to pave the way for more streamlined ways of building and operating," says Tom Chi, lead investor on the deal.
"Until now this shift had been supported by batteries where sometimes the power is still coming from fossil fuels from a distant plant. Ambient Photonics takes the further step, enabling renewable power in every household without ever needing to think of charging or replacing batteries.”
