The global battery supply chain must be purged of its reliance on forced labor and child labor.

Batteries are central to multiple industries, and will only become more essential as we increase our dependence on electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and other technologies that make heavy use of them. But first, there’s a big problem to be solved: the proliferation of forced labor and child labor in battery supply chains. Currently, an estimated 75% of the world’s battery supply chain is at risk of violating U.S. and European Union laws on forced labor. Yet putting a stop to these abuses is no simple task, given the complexity of battery supply chains, which encompass the mining, refining and assembly of raw materials and constituent parts. On this episode, we discuss the challenge with Ilya Levtov, founder and chief executive officer of Craft, provider of a software platform for monitoring and evaluating suppliers. He offers a frank assessment — as well as a degree of optimism — about the progress of efforts toward ending forced and child labor in battery supply chains. Hosted by Bob Bowman, Editor-in-Chief of SupplyChainBrain.

Show notes:

A New York Times article on forced labor in China’s car battery supply chain.