Electrification of the automotive range is underway for all car brands, and BMW is no exception. With more and more electric and hybrid models the companies are abandoning fossil fuels, trying to reduce the ecological footprint of each car. Not long ago Oliver Zipse, CEO of BMW, indicated that the company will bet on a new generation of batteries starting next year, which will power models such as the i4, ix SUV, among other models that will be manufactured in the near future.

At about the same time that Zipse released this information to the market, StoreDot claimed to have created the world's "first" prototype silicon-dominated battery capable of recharging in just 10 minutes, which the company says will be ready for mass production in 2024.

According to the "greensavers" portal, 10-minute charging times are the holy grail of battery researchers, but here's the interesting part: the company's prototypes use the 4680 format preferred by Tesla.

Battery information aside, BMW unveiled the CirCular concept car at the Munich Motor Show, a preview of what the company thinks the cars of the future will look like. Details are few, except that the car is destined for production in 2040 and is designed to be 100% recyclable. The CirCular incorporates the three principles of the circular economy - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

BMW's head of design, Domagoj Dukec talked to DesignBoom about the concept, having explained that "a sustainable car cannot just be about reducing, reusing and recycling materials, you also need to rethink construction, manufacturing processes and look at our suppliers as well as customer wishes."

The company says that the CirCular "defines a clean minivan that is seamless from front to rear. The rising roofline and forward sloping hood panel add dynamism to the silhouette. Below the tailgate at the rear, a sculpted surface furthers these impressions with an impressive horizontal movement. The body is left unpainted, made of light gold anodized secondary aluminum. This calmer appearance matches the more lively bluish purple color at the rear, made of heat-treated steel."

Dukec adds, "BMW must be iconic. This is the way to extend the life cycle of a car. The exterior is intended to be timeless so that it can be considered fresh for more than a decade. To do this, we need to balance minimalism with expressiveness. It's all about rounded, organic proportions, without styling lines that can go out of fashion relatively quickly."