Aprotic Li-CO2 batteries, what’s next?

Aprotic Li-CO2 batteries have attracted significant research interest over the past decade, notable for their energy storage capability and CO2 recyclability. However, the operational mechanism of Li-CO2 batteries remains incompletely understood, which has severely hindered their practical applications. In this comment, the current understandings and remaining uncertainties of the Li-CO2 electrochemistry are summarized, and the future perspectives for next steps are proposed.