Malta stores electricity as heat and cold — a technology that sounds like science fiction but was born in a Google X lab. Their system converts electricity into thermal energy, stores it in tanks of molten salt and chilled liquid, then converts it back to electricity when needed. It can store energy for hours to days, uses no lithium, and works anywhere. If Malta's technology scales, it could solve the biggest problem in renewable energy: what happens when the sun goes down and the wind stops blowing.
Founded
2018
HQ
Cambridge, USA
Total Raised
$78 million
Founder
Ramya Swaminathan
Status
Private
Website
www.maltainc.comTHE ORIGIN STORY
Malta was incubated inside Google X (Alphabet's moonshot lab) based on research by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Robert Laughlin at Stanford. The concept: use electricity to create temperature differences (very hot and very cold), store those temperatures in insulated tanks, and then use a heat engine to convert the temperature difference back into electricity.
In 2018, the project spun out of Google X as an independent company led by CEO Ramya Swaminathan.
WHAT THEY ACTUALLY DO
Project-based revenue. Malta sells complete energy storage systems to utilities, grid operators, and industrial customers.
Revenue comes from equipment sales, installation services, and potentially long-term maintenance contracts. The business model is similar to other large-scale energy storage companies.
THE PRODUCTS
Malta Thermal Energy Storage System (electro-thermal storage). Molten Salt Hot Storage.
Chilled Antifreeze Cold Storage. Heat Engine (converts temperature back to electricity).
10+ hour storage duration. No lithium or rare earth materials required.
HOW THEY GREW
Utility and grid-scale projects. Malta targets the multi-hundred-megawatt-hour energy storage market where lithium-ion batteries are too expensive and pumped hydro requires specific geography.
The company is developing its first commercial-scale plant and working with utilities on pilot projects.
THE HARD PART
Technology risk and first-of-a-kind challenges. Malta's thermal energy storage has been demonstrated at lab scale but has not yet been proven at full commercial scale.
Building the first commercial plant involves significant engineering risk and capital requirements. Competition from other long-duration energy storage technologies (Form Energy's iron-air batteries, compressed air, flow batteries).
MONEY TRAIL
Spin-Out
2018 · Led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures
$26M raised
Series B
2020 · Led by Concord New Energy
$33M raised
Additional
2022 · Led by Various
$19M raised
WHO BACKED THEM
Spun out of Google X / Alphabet. Backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (Bill Gates), Concord New Energy, and Alfa Laval.
The Google X pedigree and Breakthrough Energy backing provide credibility.
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