Ideal Power (IPWR) Q2 2025: B-TRAN Device Cuts Losses 60%, Unlocking Multi-Segment Adoption
Ideal Power’s Q2 centered on B-TRAN’s technical edge and accelerating commercial traction, as industry players validate its switch technology for data center, industrial, and automotive applications. The company’s 60% loss reduction versus silicon carbide prototypes is resonating with global OEMs, positioning IPWR for a material sales ramp in the second half and beyond. Strategic wins in Asia and with Stellantis signal a turning point, but execution risk around education and qualification remains a key watchpoint.
Summary
- B-TRAN Outperforms Silicon Carbide: Customers cite lower losses and cost as key adoption drivers.
- Automotive and Data Center Engagements Expand: Stellantis and Asian OEMs deepen collaboration, broadening addressable markets.
- Sales Ramp Visibility Improves: Multiple design wins and product launches set up 2025 as an inflection year.
Performance Analysis
Q2 marked a pivotal operational and commercial quarter for Ideal Power, as B-TRAN’s technical validation translated into expanding design wins and deepening customer engagements. While revenue remains modest, management emphasized that the company is entering the critical phase of its commercial ramp, with the first B-TRAN-enabled circuit breaker product launch and Stellantis’ multi-application purchase order expected in the near term. Cash burn rose in line with guidance, reflecting increased investment in sales and engineering to support accelerating customer activity, particularly in Asia and automotive verticals.
Breakthrough results with B-TRAN—notably a 60% reduction in conduction losses versus silicon carbide (SiC) prototypes—are driving industrial and automotive OEMs to fast-track evaluations. The company’s asset-light model, defined as outsourcing manufacturing and leveraging global supply chain partners, continues to limit capital intensity and provides flexibility to scale with demand. Operating expenses tracked higher due to wafer fabrication and personnel additions, but liquidity remains sufficient through mid-2026, with no debt and $11.1 million in cash.
- Segment Mix Shifts: Industrial circuit breaker opportunities are leading initial revenue ramp, with automotive design cycles trailing but representing larger long-term content per vehicle.
- Customer Pipeline Broadens: Five global auto OEMs and multiple Tier 1 suppliers now evaluating or integrating B-TRAN, alongside large data center and power management players.
- Margin Leverage Potential: B-TRAN’s lower loss and cost profile versus SiC and IGBT, insulated gate bipolar transistor, solutions is a core differentiator for both OEMs and end users.
While Q2 financials reflect the pre-revenue stage, the breadth of customer engagement and technical validation points to an imminent transition to commercial revenue, with industrial and data center markets expected to lead the initial ramp.
Executive Commentary
"We shipped updated solid-state circuit breaker prototypes to our first DesignWin customer...with a 60% reduction in losses compared to the silicon carbide prototypes. This is a significant performance improvement with much higher power density while achieving lower total losses using silicon devices at a lower price point than silicon carbide devices."
Dan Berdar, President and Chief Executive Officer
"We expect third quarter 2025 cash burn to increase...primarily due to the hiring of additional sales and engineering personnel. We have sufficient liquidity on our balance sheet to fund operations through at least mid-2026."
Tim Burry, Chief Financial Officer
Strategic Positioning
1. B-TRAN’s Value Proposition: Cost and Performance Disruption
B-TRAN, Ideal Power’s proprietary bidirectional power switch, is gaining traction because it delivers lower conduction losses and cost than incumbent silicon carbide and IGBT solutions. This enables higher power density and smaller, more efficient OEM designs—critical in applications like data centers, EVs, and industrial power management. The ability to replace four IGBT devices with a single B-TRAN in bidirectional applications further strengthens the cost argument.
2. Multi-Segment Commercial Pipeline: From Industrial to Automotive
Initial revenue ramp is expected from industrial circuit breaker and data center applications, where design cycles are shorter and B-TRAN’s technical advantages are most acute. The company is engaged with a growing roster of global OEMs, including four of the top ten automakers and five Tier 1 suppliers, with Stellantis’ purchase order spanning multiple EV applications and platforms. The automotive path is longer but offers higher content per vehicle, with management estimating up to $1,100 in semiconductor value per EV, primarily in drivetrain inverters and contactors.
3. Asia and Channel Expansion: Accelerating Adoption
Asia is emerging as a key growth region, with new distribution partnerships and sales hires targeting the world’s largest power electronics market. Asian OEMs are moving faster than U.S. counterparts in both automotive and industrial adoption, and the company’s channel expansion is designed to leverage this regional momentum.
4. Supply Chain and IP Moat: Risk Mitigation and Differentiation
Ideal Power’s asset-light model and dual-sourcing strategy provide supply chain resilience, with operations independent of China, minimizing exposure to tariff and geopolitical risk. The company’s IP portfolio now spans 96 issued patents globally, with proprietary process flows protected as trade secrets—serving as a barrier to entry for would-be competitors.
5. Qualification and Customer Education: Adoption Bottleneck
Technical education and qualification remain gating factors, as engineers are more familiar with legacy technologies like SiC and IGBT. Recent third-party prequalification tests, with zero failures over 50,000 power cycles, are helping to overcome customer conservatism, but the adoption curve will depend on continued data sharing and successful product launches by early adopters.
Key Considerations
This quarter marks a strategic inflection for Ideal Power, as commercial validation and customer engagement broaden across multiple verticals. Investors should focus on:
Key Considerations:
- Technical Validation Drives Adoption: B-TRAN’s superior loss and cost profile is converting industry skepticism into design wins, with industrial and data center segments leading the way.
- Automotive Content Opportunity: Stellantis’ order is a catalyst, with potential for multi-brand, multi-platform adoption and content per EV exceeding $1,000.
- Sales Ramp Still in Early Stages: Revenue visibility is improving, but the pace of ramp will hinge on customer qualification cycles and volume orders from initial launches.
- Cash Burn and Scale Readiness: Operating expenses are rising with go-to-market investments, but the balance sheet is clean and capital needs are manageable for the next year.
- Asia as a Growth Engine: Faster adoption cycles and new channel partners in Asia could accelerate near-term growth versus slower-moving U.S. markets.
Risks
Execution risk remains high as Ideal Power transitions from validation to commercial scale, with customer education and technical qualification as primary bottlenecks. Any delays in automotive qualification, slower-than-expected adoption in industrial markets, or unforeseen supply chain disruptions could impact the timing and magnitude of the sales ramp. Competitive threats from incremental improvements to legacy technologies (e.g., IGTO) are limited, but cannot be fully dismissed.
Forward Outlook
For Q3 2025, Ideal Power guided to:
- Cash burn of $2.7 to $2.9 million, reflecting increased sales and engineering hiring.
- Initial commercial product revenue as the first B-TRAN-enabled circuit breaker launches.
For full-year 2025, management maintained guidance of:
- Full-year cash burn just over $10 million, supporting expanded go-to-market initiatives.
Management highlighted several factors that shape the outlook:
- Sales ramp will be driven by industrial and data center customers, with automotive revenue lagging but representing larger long-term upside.
- Third-party automotive qualification and new product launches are expected to unlock additional customer adoption in the second half.
Takeaways
Ideal Power is approaching a commercial inflection, with B-TRAN’s technical and cost advantages validated by global OEMs and early product launches imminent. The company’s asset-light model, deepening channel presence in Asia, and robust IP position provide structural advantages, but the transition from pilot to scale remains the critical risk and opportunity.
- Design Win Momentum: Early adopters in Asia and with Stellantis are setting the stage for a broader sales ramp, with industrial circuit breaker markets leading the way.
- Automotive Platform Leverage: Stellantis’ push for commonality across brands and platforms could drive substantial content per vehicle if adoption broadens.
- Execution Watch: Investors should monitor the pace of customer qualification, volume orders, and the ability to convert technical wins into recurring revenue as key catalysts for the next several quarters.
Conclusion
Ideal Power’s Q2 2025 call crystallizes the company’s transition from R&D to commercialization, with B-TRAN’s technical edge unlocking multi-segment adoption. The next phase hinges on execution—translating design wins and technical validation into sustained, scalable revenue growth.
Industry Read-Through
IPWR’s quarter highlights a broader inflection in the power semiconductor market, as OEMs increasingly prioritize efficiency, programmability, and cost in next-generation EV and data center infrastructure. The shift away from legacy electromechanical and SiC solutions signals opportunity for disruptive device architectures in high-growth electrification verticals. Peer companies serving circuit protection, EV powertrain, and data center switchgear segments should expect heightened customer scrutiny on conduction losses and total cost of ownership, with IP-protected, bidirectional solutions gaining share. The rapid adoption curve in Asia may foreshadow accelerated technology turnover across global markets.