Samsung Asset Management launches solid-state battery and ESS ETF targeting AI power infrastructure

Samsung Asset Management is launching an exchange-traded fund that invests simultaneously in solid-state batteries and energy storage systems. The move reflects a strategy to broaden its secondary battery investment focus — which has been under pressure from slowing electric vehicle demand — toward power infrastructure tied to the expansion of AI data centers and next-generation battery technology.

Samsung Asset Management announced Monday the listing of the KODEX Solid-State Battery ESS TOP2 Plus ETF, which concentrates on solid-state batteries and ESS, both widely regarded as the next growth engines of the battery industry.

The product combines the growth potential of ESS and solid-state batteries within a single portfolio. The fund's design reflects a view that ESS — which stores and supplies electricity — is emerging as a core component of power infrastructure as AI data center expansion drives rapid growth in electricity demand.

Solid-state batteries are a next-generation technology that replaces the liquid electrolyte in conventional lithium-ion batteries with a solid electrolyte. The switch reduces fire risk and increases energy density, opening up potential applications beyond electric vehicles to include humanoid robots, aerospace, urban air mobility and ESS — any field requiring high-performance batteries.

The ETF aims to allocate 50% of its portfolio to Samsung SDI and LG Energy Solution, the two flagship South Korean battery makers. Both companies hold competitive positions in ESS battery manufacturing while advancing solid-state battery development, making them well-positioned to capture near-term ESS earnings momentum and longer-term solid-state battery commercialization expectations.

Beyond the two anchor holdings, the fund invests across the broader solid-state battery and ESS value chains. On the solid-state battery side, it targets key materials companies in areas such as solid electrolytes, silicon anodes and next-generation cathode materials. On the ESS side, it spreads investment across power conversion equipment, large-scale power devices, system packaging and battery manufacturing equipment. Major holdings include ISU Specialty Chemical, Daejoo Electronic Materials, Lotte Energy Materials, L&F, LS Electric, Hyosung Heavy Industries, Seojin System and Creative & Innovative System.

"This ETF is designed to focus on the next growth cycle of the battery industry by investing in solid-state battery materials companies and core ESS value chain companies," said Shin Hyun-jin, a fund manager at Samsung Asset Management. "It will serve as an effective investment vehicle for investors who want exposure to the structural growth of the battery industry as it expands beyond electric vehicles into AI infrastructure, robotics and future mobility."

Investor sentiment toward secondary batteries, which had weakened amid slowing EV demand, is shifting toward ESS as rising electricity consumption from AI data center expansion takes hold. According to BloombergNEF, global new ESS installations reached 112 gigawatts last year, up 48% from the prior year. Solid-state batteries represent the medium-to-long-term growth thesis, while ESS is the segment where order growth and sales gains are already materializing.