Could a Department of Energy project known as the Battery 500 Consortium be working with Tesla to commercialize next generation lithium ion batteries? On May 19th, the Battery 500 Consortium released an update about its project, saying they've achieved an energy density of 350 Wh/kg., that can last for 350 charge cycles. This is a huge improvement from a couple years ago, and signals the technology is on the path towards commercialization. Shirley Meng is one of the leading researchers in the group, and has worked with Maxwell Technologies extensively in the past (before Tesla acquired them). Maxwell is also an electrode supplier for the Battery 500 Consortium's project. What do all these clues mean? Is this breakthrough in academia tied to what Tesla will announce at its upcoming battery investor day??