Two of Northvolt’s top former executives are moving quickly past the high-profile battery maker’s bankruptcy, channeling their expertise into a bold new artificial intelligence venture in Sweden. The startup, called Aris Machina, is set to develop AI-powered software to optimize manufacturing across a range of advanced industries—including batteries, semiconductors, biopharma, robotics, and defense.
Turning Crisis Into Opportunity: A New Mission for Industry Veterans
Peter Carlsson, Northvolt’s ex-CEO, and Siddharth Khullar, the company’s former AI chief, are the driving force behind Aris Machina. The move comes only months after Northvolt collapsed with $5.8 billion in debt, marking one of Europe’s largest recent industrial bankruptcies. But instead of stepping back, the duo are using the experience as a launchpad for their next chapter.
Carlsson joins the Aris Machina board as his first major public role since leaving Northvolt in November, while Khullar is leading the operational and technical direction as co-founder. Their previous collaboration—tackling some of the toughest machine learning challenges in battery research and manufacturing—has set the foundation for their new venture’s ambitious approach.
Fresh Funding and a World-Class Team
Aris Machina has secured early-stage investment from a select group of angel investors and top-tier venture capital firms including Earlybird, Village Global, AENU, and Planet A. Khullar declined to specify the funding amount but confirmed that up to 20 engineers and specialists will form the company’s initial core team.
“Unless you experienced Northvolt from the inside, it’s difficult to understand what an incredibly hard mission we were after. And I come from some companies that have done some very difficult things, and so does Peter.” — Siddharth Khullar
Khullar emphasized that the new team will reflect the same multidisciplinary approach that drove Northvolt’s innovation—drawing on expertise from fields as diverse as battery science, automation, and advanced software engineering.
AI for Manufacturing: A Universal Solution
The core vision for Aris Machina is to develop an industrial software platform powered by cutting-edge AI and machine learning. This system will target pain points and inefficiencies in every phase of the manufacturing process, delivering solutions that are faster, smarter, and more adaptive than conventional approaches.
While the initial market will focus on sectors familiar to the founders—such as batteries and advanced electronics—Aris Machina plans to serve a broad range of clients, from pharmaceutical manufacturing to high-precision robotics and even defense contractors seeking a competitive edge through AI-driven production.
A New Beginning After Northvolt
The fall of Northvolt was a massive blow to Europe’s clean energy ambitions, but its legacy may now live on through the expertise and drive of its former leaders. Aris Machina’s launch signals both resilience and optimism for the future of industrial innovation in Sweden and beyond.
With a well-funded runway, high-profile leadership, and a mission to bring AI to the heart of modern manufacturing, all eyes will be on Aris Machina as it ramps up operations in the coming months.
