The Powerhouse

Inside the Invention of a Battery to Save the World

By: Steve LeVine

Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain

A Soul of the New Machine for our time, a gripping account of invention, commerce, and duplicity in the age of technology

A worldwide race is on to perfect the next engine of economic growth, the advanced lithium-ion battery. It will power the electric car, relieve global warming, and catapult the winner into a new era of economic and political mastery. Can the United States win?

Steve LeVine was granted unprecedented access to a secret federal laboratory outside Chicago, where a group of geniuses is trying to solve this next monumental task of physics. But these scientists - almost all foreign born - are not alone. With so much at stake, researchers in Japan, South Korea, and China are in the same pursuit. The drama intensifies when a Silicon Valley start-up licenses the federal laboratory's signature invention with the aim of a blockbuster sale to the world's biggest carmakers.

The Powerhouse is a real-time, two-year thrilling account of big invention, big commercialization, and big deception. It exposes the layers of competition and ambition, aspiration and disappointment behind this great turning point in the history of technology.

©2015 Steve LeVine (P)2015 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Mr. LeVine provides a fascinating insight into the challenges of scientific advancement, especially the difficulty of translating victories in the lab to the demands of the mass market.... Mr. LeVine has written something like a thriller.... An important story with world-wide implications." (Wall Street Journal)

"A propulsive techno-saga." (Nature)

"Captivating.... A rollicking good tale." (Joe Nocera, New York Times)

Needs a sequel

I was very intrigued by this book but I feel kind of let down by the rather abrupt inconclusive ending. Maybe in ten or fifteen years we can get the sequel.

Nitty Gritty Battery Story

This is a very detailed story of the scientists, car companies, government programs, and venture capitalists, involved in the development of the battery of the future. This tries to do quite a lot and may be too detailed for many readers. I understand those that feel it was boring. It covers the stories of battery development, the process of vying for a big government projects, the greed and maneuvering of venture capital funded startup companies, and how EV’s might affect the environment and the oil industry. Although this was not an easy listen, I learned a lot and enjoyed the various storylines. Overall I was very satisfied with this book. The one thing was unsatisfying is the story ends abruptly with the battery of the future still in flux. The narration was very good, dealing with the technical detail very well.

Too long

This is an interesting story. Just way longer than it should be. The book is full of a necessary stories. And in the end it seems to report on the loser side of the EV competition. You could effectively drop the mid 50% of the book and get the story. That I do recommend

Great if this is a topic of interest

Great mix of science and narrative, so long as you are interested in battery technology. Not much discussion of Elon Musk or Tesla at all, in case that is a reason you're considering this book.

Inside look into the battery world & much more!

This is an amazing peak inside the battery world, the National Labs, DOE/Washington and international business. What becomes apparent immediately is that scientific investigation is really hard but dealing with the human foibles of ego, self-interest, bureaucracy, territoriality, and endless political games is even harder and more unpredictable. Plumbing reality for the laws of Nature is the easier task. How did we ever advance as far as we have????

Great battery history for battery enthusiasts

Really good book on the battery race. It is necessary to have a continuation to tell how the story finally shaped out.
I totally recommend the book for people that already know about battery chemistry and uses, not a beginners book.

Tough to get excited about the ending...

...but that's not Steve's fault. This book is well written and has a lot of information.

Outstanding

I really enjoyed the behind the scenes to this most important tech race. Highly recommended. I hope for a followup in a few years.

Informative

An informative look at the challenges, pitfalls and potential rewards that comprise the effort to develop a better battery.

Just ok

I believe this was a long form article before it was a book. Probably should have stayed that way. Not very compelling, given what could probably be done with the topic.