The Trump administration awarded $500 million in August to seven companies working on battery minerals, materials, manufacturing and recycling, marking the opening disbursement from two Department of Energy programs funded at $3 billion each under the Biden-era Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The effort is unfolding alongside the administration’s termination of federal EV tax credits and reversal of other Biden-era battery and electric-vehicle policies. Analysts and executives told CNBC that the grants are modest compared with the investment and time required to challenge China’s position across the battery supply chain. China produces roughly 85% of global EV battery cathode active material, more than 90% of anode active material and about four-fifths of battery cells. It also processes 95% of spodumene, a hard-rock lithium mineral, according to Lilac Solutions CEO Raef Sully. Coreshell Technologies received $50 million to make battery anodes with U.S.-mined silicon instead of Chinese graphite, while Lilac received $100 million for technology that extracts lithium from saline water and bypasses processing dominated by China. About $24 billion in battery projects announced since January 2025 have been scrapped, according to Atlas Public Policy. China’s lead is reinforced by stronger domestic EV adoption: new energy vehicles accounted for 65% of Chinese passenger-car sales in July, compared with about 24% for electrified vehicles in U.S. sales during the second quarter of 2026. Executives said the United States has innovative companies but faces a major challenge in scaling production, while energy-storage demand continues to grow and China expands its lead in EVs and battery manufacturing.