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TSUKUBA, Japan, Oct. 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Alternō, an Asia-based climate-tech company pioneering sand-based thermal battery systems, announced today the establishment of Alternō Japan GK in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture. This marks a major milestone in the company's mission to decarbonize industrial heat — a sector responsible for over 30% of global CO₂ emissions — through affordable, zero-emission thermal energy storage.
Supported by the Ibaraki Prefecture Startup Visa Program and Leave a Nest, the new entity will serve as Alternō's regional hub for product localization, R&D, and pilot-scale manufacturing. The initiative is being developed in collaboration with Kikuchi Seiki Co., Ltd., and Yamazaki Industry Co., Ltd., with additional coordination from JETRO and Tsukuba City.
"Japan represents a key step in Alternō's journey to build a global network of clean heat solutions," said Hai Ho, Co-Founder & CEO of Alternō. "Through our partnerships in Ibaraki — one of Japan's most innovation-driven and agriculture-focused regions — we're creating a pathway to decarbonize industries that have long depended on fossil fuels. Our goal is simple: make clean heat accessible, reliable, and affordable for every factory."
Powering Japan's Industrial Heat Transition
Alternō's patented Sand Battery stores renewable electricity as high-temperature heat (up to 600°C) using abundant, recyclable sand as the storage medium. The system enables factories to transition from fossil fuels to renewable heat without compromising performance or safety. Unlike lithium-ion batteries, Alternō's system is non-toxic, fireproof, and made from locally sourced materials, ensuring both environmental and economic sustainability.
In Japan, Alternō will focus on delivering solutions for agriculture, such as low-carbon heat for greenhouses and food drying, as well as light manufacturing, including textile and material drying processes.
The company is also developing Alternō E, a next-generation sand-based electricity storage system for data centers and critical infrastructure, designed to replace lithium batteries while ensuring safe, stable and clean backup power.
Two Product Lines for the Japanese Market
Alternō Japan will introduce two key product systems:
- Alternō Hybrid — a modular thermal battery that combines electric and biomass heating for continuous renewable heat supply in rural agro-processing. The system enables farmers to convert organic waste into energy, reducing both costs and emissions.
- Alternō Mini — a compact thermal battery designed for small-scale facilities, research institutes, and demonstration projects. The system is being developed in partnership with Yamazaki Industry Co., Ltd., under technical coordination from Kikuchi Seiki Co., Ltd.
Alternō will publicly debut Alternō Mini at Tokyo ENEX 2026, one of Japan's leading energy exhibitions, featuring live demonstrations for both Japanese and international audiences.
Building Japan's Clean Heat Manufacturing Ecosystem
Alternō's Japan operations bring together a network of engineering and manufacturing partners — including Kikuchi Seiki for coordination and precision engineering, and Yamazaki Industry for prototype fabrication. This collaboration aims to accelerate product certification, reduce manufacturing costs through localization, and align Alternō's Sand Battery systems with Japanese industrial standards.
"We're deeply grateful for the trust and collaboration from Japan's manufacturing ecosystem," Hai added. "Working with Kikuchi, Yamazaki, and our partners in Tsukuba allows us to merge deep-tech innovation with Japan's world-class engineering excellence."
Investor and Ecosystem Support
Alternō's expansion into Japan is supported by leading ecosystem partners and investors, including ADB Ventures, UntroD Capital, JETRO, JICA, Leave a Nest, P4G, and NTT East.
"We strongly believe in the power of technology transfer, and Alternō's expansion into Japan demonstrates how Asian innovation can transcend borders to help decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors. Alternō's expansion into Japan marks an important milestone, and we're proud to support their growth," said Pang Sittakaradej of ADB Ventures.
"Japan is a critical market for scaling clean energy technologies," said Daiki Kumamoto, Director at UntroD Capital Asia.
"Alternō's sand battery directly addresses one of the toughest challenges in industrial and agricultural decarbonization—reliable, high-temperature heat. We are proud to back their next phase of global growth."
Recognized as Deep Tech Venture of the Year 2025, Alternō continues to lead Asia's transition toward sustainable industrial energy through scalable, sand-based heat and power storage solutions.
About UntroD Capital Asia
UntroD Capital Asia is a leading deep-tech VC firm dedicated to fostering impactful technologies that drive sustainable growth. As the manager of the Real Tech Global Fund, UntroD Capital Asia partners with innovative startups and businesses addressing global challenges in sectors such as energy transition, sustainable agri-food, and industrial manufacturing. UntroD's hands-on approach and industry network provide portfolio companies with the resources and expertise needed to scale their operations and achieve lasting impact.
HP: https://untrod.inc
About ADB Ventures
ADB Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), supporting early-stage technology startups with the potential to scale and deliver climate and development impact in Asia and the Pacific. Through dedicated funds, ADB Ventures invests at the seed and early stages with a focus on cleantech, fintech, and sustainable agriculture. Leveraging ADB's regional networks and expertise, ADB Ventures addresses critical financing gaps, catalyzes capital into impact technology sectors, and accelerates the deployment of transformative solutions across developing Asia.
About Alternō
Alternō, an Asia-based climate-tech startup, is pioneering sand-based thermal battery systems that deliver high-temperature, zero-emission heat for industrial and agricultural applications. Founded in 2023, the company is expanding its presence to Japan to accelerate clean heat adoption and local manufacturing. Alternō aims to drive the energy transition in hard-to-abate sectors across Asia and beyond, with a long-term goal of reducing 100 million tons of CO₂ emissions annually by 2030.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Alternō
race2zero@alterno.net
www.alterno.net
Link photo: HERE
TSUKUBA, Japan, Oct. 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Alternō, an Asia-based climate-tech company pioneering sand-based thermal battery systems, announced today the establishment of Alternō Japan GK in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture. This marks a major milestone in the company's mission to decarbonize industrial heat — a sector responsible for over 30% of global CO₂ emissions — through affordable, zero-emission thermal energy storage.
Supported by the Ibaraki Prefecture Startup Visa Program and Leave a Nest, the new entity will serve as Alternō's regional hub for product localization, R&D, and pilot-scale manufacturing. The initiative is being developed in collaboration with Kikuchi Seiki Co., Ltd., and Yamazaki Industry Co., Ltd., with additional coordination from JETRO and Tsukuba City.
"Japan represents a key step in Alternō's journey to build a global network of clean heat solutions," said Hai Ho, Co-Founder & CEO of Alternō. "Through our partnerships in Ibaraki — one of Japan's most innovation-driven and agriculture-focused regions — we're creating a pathway to decarbonize industries that have long depended on fossil fuels. Our goal is simple: make clean heat accessible, reliable, and affordable for every factory."
Powering Japan's Industrial Heat Transition
Alternō's patented Sand Battery stores renewable electricity as high-temperature heat (up to 600°C) using abundant, recyclable sand as the storage medium. The system enables factories to transition from fossil fuels to renewable heat without compromising performance or safety. Unlike lithium-ion batteries, Alternō's system is non-toxic, fireproof, and made from locally sourced materials, ensuring both environmental and economic sustainability.
In Japan, Alternō will focus on delivering solutions for agriculture, such as low-carbon heat for greenhouses and food drying, as well as light manufacturing, including textile and material drying processes.
The company is also developing Alternō E, a next-generation sand-based electricity storage system for data centers and critical infrastructure, designed to replace lithium batteries while ensuring safe, stable and clean backup power.
Two Product Lines for the Japanese Market
Alternō Japan will introduce two key product systems:
- Alternō Hybrid — a modular thermal battery that combines electric and biomass heating for continuous renewable heat supply in rural agro-processing. The system enables farmers to convert organic waste into energy, reducing both costs and emissions.
- Alternō Mini — a compact thermal battery designed for small-scale facilities, research institutes, and demonstration projects. The system is being developed in partnership with Yamazaki Industry Co., Ltd., under technical coordination from Kikuchi Seiki Co., Ltd.
Alternō will publicly debut Alternō Mini at Tokyo ENEX 2026, one of Japan's leading energy exhibitions, featuring live demonstrations for both Japanese and international audiences.
Building Japan's Clean Heat Manufacturing Ecosystem
Alternō's Japan operations bring together a network of engineering and manufacturing partners — including Kikuchi Seiki for coordination and precision engineering, and Yamazaki Industry for prototype fabrication. This collaboration aims to accelerate product certification, reduce manufacturing costs through localization, and align Alternō's Sand Battery systems with Japanese industrial standards.
"We're deeply grateful for the trust and collaboration from Japan's manufacturing ecosystem," Hai added. "Working with Kikuchi, Yamazaki, and our partners in Tsukuba allows us to merge deep-tech innovation with Japan's world-class engineering excellence."
Investor and Ecosystem Support
Alternō's expansion into Japan is supported by leading ecosystem partners and investors, including ADB Ventures, UntroD Capital, JETRO, JICA, Leave a Nest, P4G, and NTT East.
"We strongly believe in the power of technology transfer, and Alternō's expansion into Japan demonstrates how Asian innovation can transcend borders to help decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors. Alternō's expansion into Japan marks an important milestone, and we're proud to support their growth," said Pang Sittakaradej of ADB Ventures.
"Japan is a critical market for scaling clean energy technologies," said Daiki Kumamoto, Director at UntroD Capital Asia.
"Alternō's sand battery directly addresses one of the toughest challenges in industrial and agricultural decarbonization—reliable, high-temperature heat. We are proud to back their next phase of global growth."
Recognized as Deep Tech Venture of the Year 2025, Alternō continues to lead Asia's transition toward sustainable industrial energy through scalable, sand-based heat and power storage solutions.
About UntroD Capital Asia
UntroD Capital Asia is a leading deep-tech VC firm dedicated to fostering impactful technologies that drive sustainable growth. As the manager of the Real Tech Global Fund, UntroD Capital Asia partners with innovative startups and businesses addressing global challenges in sectors such as energy transition, sustainable agri-food, and industrial manufacturing. UntroD's hands-on approach and industry network provide portfolio companies with the resources and expertise needed to scale their operations and achieve lasting impact.
HP: https://untrod.inc
About ADB Ventures
ADB Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), supporting early-stage technology startups with the potential to scale and deliver climate and development impact in Asia and the Pacific. Through dedicated funds, ADB Ventures invests at the seed and early stages with a focus on cleantech, fintech, and sustainable agriculture. Leveraging ADB's regional networks and expertise, ADB Ventures addresses critical financing gaps, catalyzes capital into impact technology sectors, and accelerates the deployment of transformative solutions across developing Asia.
About Alternō
Alternō, an Asia-based climate-tech startup, is pioneering sand-based thermal battery systems that deliver high-temperature, zero-emission heat for industrial and agricultural applications. Founded in 2023, the company is expanding its presence to Japan to accelerate clean heat adoption and local manufacturing. Alternō aims to drive the energy transition in hard-to-abate sectors across Asia and beyond, with a long-term goal of reducing 100 million tons of CO₂ emissions annually by 2030.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Alternō
race2zero@alterno.net
www.alterno.net
Link photo: HERE
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Alternō's Sand Battery Enters Japan: Decarbonizing Industrial Heat and Supplying Clean Heat for Greenhouse Farming
Alternō's Sand Battery Enters Japan: Decarbonizing Industrial Heat and Supplying Clean Heat for Greenhouse Farming
ARMONK, N.Y., Dec. 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is the text of an email sent today to all IBM employees by Chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna:
IBMers,
I am saddened to share that Lou Gerstner, IBM's Chairman and CEO from 1993 to 2002, passed away yesterday.
Lou arrived at IBM at a moment when the company's future was genuinely uncertain. The industry was changing rapidly, our business was under pressure, and there was serious debate about whether IBM should even remain whole. His leadership during that period reshaped the company. Not by looking backward, but by focusing relentlessly on what our clients would need next.
One of Lou's earliest signals as CEO has become part of IBM lore. Early on, he stopped a long internal presentation and said, simply, "Let's just talk." The message was clear: less inward focus, more real discussion, and much closer attention to customers. That mindset would define his tenure.
Lou believed one of IBM's central problems was that we had become optimized around our own processes, debates, and structures rather than around client outcomes. As he later put it, the company had lost sight of a basic truth of business: understanding the customer and delivering what the customer actually values.
That insight drove real change. Meetings became more direct. Decisions were grounded more in facts and client impact than in hierarchy or tradition. Innovation mattered if it could translate into something clients would come to rely on. Execution in the quarter and the year mattered, but always in service of longer-term relevance.
Lou made what may have been the most consequential decision in IBM's modern history: to keep IBM together. At the time, the company was organized into many separate businesses, each pursuing its own path. Lou understood that clients didn't want fragmented technology—they wanted integrated solutions. That conviction shaped IBM's evolution and reestablished our relevance for many of the world's largest enterprises.
Lou also understood that strategy alone would not be enough. He believed lasting change required a shift in culture—in how people behave when no one is watching. What mattered was what IBMers valued, how honestly they confronted reality, and how willing they were to challenge themselves and each other. Rather than discard IBM's long-standing values, he pushed the company to renew them to meet the demands of a very different era.
I have my own memory of Lou from the mid-1990s, at a small town hall with a few hundred people. What stood out was his intensity and focus. He had an ability to hold the short term and the long term in his head at the same time. He pushed hard on delivery, but he was equally focused on innovation: doing work that clients would remember, not just consume.
Lou stayed engaged with IBM long after his tenure ended. From my first days as CEO, he was generous with advice—but always careful in how he gave it. He would offer perspective, then say, "I've been gone a long time—I'm here if you need me." He listened closely to what others were saying about IBM and reflected it back candidly.
That neutral, experienced voice mattered to me, and I was fortunate to learn from Lou on a regular basis.
Lou was direct. He expected preparation. He challenged assumptions. But he was deeply committed to building a company that could adapt—culturally as much as strategically—without losing its core values.
Lou's impact extended well beyond IBM. Before joining the company, he had already built an extraordinary career—becoming one of the youngest partners at McKinsey & Company, later serving as president of American Express and CEO of RJR Nabisco. After IBM, he went on to chair The Carlyle Group and devoted significant time and resources to philanthropy, particularly in education and biomedical research. A native of Long Island, NY, Lou earned his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth and an MBA from Harvard, and he remained deeply devoted to his family throughout his life. Lou was preceded in death by his son Louis Gerstner III.
We will hold a celebration in the new year to reflect on Lou's legacy and what his leadership enabled at IBM.
My thoughts are with Lou's wife Robin, his daughter Elizabeth, his grandchildren and extended family, as well as his many friends, colleagues, and people around the world who were shaped by his leadership and his work.
Media Contact:
IBM Pressroom
ibmpress@us.ibm.com
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Remembering Lou Gerstner
Remembering Lou Gerstner
