There is lots of R&D going into non-lithium based solutions, some are potentially cheaper, lighter, pack in more energy and recharge faster, some may even be greener which isn't hard, but at the moment the new technologies have no longevity. Primarily because the new technologies haven't been around long enough yet to know exactly how the batteries age and how to fix the problems, other than predictions in simulation. Even so if they can make them much much cheaper if the weight is reduced and the longevity is 50% they might still be viable.
The longevity issue is not too bad with lithium because it's been around for decades already, they know from laptops and power tools all about how batteries age, and EV batteries are largely just massive assemblies of the very same. (Which is a why I'm so surprised people swallow the "batteries are for life" brigade.) Sure the lithium ion lose capacity, but generally how it happens is a known known.
The longevity issue is not too bad with lithium because it's been around for decades already, they know from laptops and power tools all about how batteries age, and EV batteries are largely just massive assemblies of the very same. (Which is a why I'm so surprised people swallow the "batteries are for life" brigade.) Sure the lithium ion lose capacity, but generally how it happens is a known known.
"Ruck, ruck, ruck, ruck ....... Ruck, ruck, ruck, ruck"