Canatu Plc has signed a one-year joint development agreement with DENSO Corporation, a leading supplier of automotive technology and components, to improve the performance of Canatu carbon nanotubes (Canatu CNTs).

The value of the agreement falls within the upper quartile of the “Medium” category (from 1.0M€ to 5M€) outlined in Canatu’s disclosure policy, with corresponding revenue expected to be recognized over the one-year term of the agreement between April 2025 and March 2026.

Canatu sees that the joint development program has significant potential for future commercialization opportunities. Such future opportunities depend, however, on the outcome of the joint development program and would only be expected to be realized over a longer period of time.

Canatu is a fast-growing deep-tech company creating advanced carbon nanotubes, CNT products, and CNT reactors for the semiconductor, automotive, and medical diagnostics industries. With its expertise in automotive solutions and commitment to carbon neutrality, DENSO drives innovation toward a sustainable mobility future. DENSO is one of Canatu’s largest shareholders.

This joint development agreement builds on the earlier memorandum of understanding announced by Canatu in December 2024. It further strengthens the parties’ long-standing collaboration to improve CNT performance, develop high-performance reactors, and advance practical applications for CNT technology, such as ADAS camera and full windshield heaters.

The purpose of this joint development agreement is to optimize the sheet resistance to transmittance ratio of CNTs. By improving this ratio, Canatu and DENSO aim to achieve high electrical conductivity while maintaining excellent light transmittance, thereby enhancing performance in current applications and expanding the potential use cases of CNTs to new ones.

Carbon nanotubes, known for their unique combination of properties, including high electrical and thermal conductivity, along with exceptional optical performance, are also a promising material for a wide range of emerging applications, such as solar cells.

“DENSO is committed to advancing mobility through cutting-edge technology,” said Hirotsugu Takeuchi, CTO of DENSO Corporation. “Our collaboration with Canatu will accelerate the development of high-performance CNT applications and enable to explore new high-value application. By leveraging our combined expertise, we aim to drive innovation that enhances vehicle safety and supports a more sustainable future.”

“We are excited about this collaboration to improve CNT performance and contribute to sustainable mobility with DENSO,” added Juha Kokkonen, CEO of Canatu Plc. “This strengthens our position as a leader in developing transformative, future-proof solutions for the automotive industry with our partners. This joint development agreement is a key step in our automotive strategy, developing ADAS camera heaters and exploring new high-value applications for our advanced carbon nanotubes.”