Neodymium iron boron (NdFeB) magnets
NdFeB magnets are the strongest permanent magnets available and irreplaceable in current EV motor and wind turbine designs; 90%+ production is Chinese.
Research snapshot · updated Apr 22, 2026
Core thesis
Every EV motor and direct-drive wind turbine uses NdFeB magnets. No substitute matches the magnetic energy density. Chinese manufacturers hold the IP and processing know-how. Jian-Ping Wang (University of Minnesota, Niron Magnetics) is pioneering iron nitride as a rare earth-free alternative — potentially game-changing if performance parity is achieved.
State of the art (2026)
The defining shift of 2026 is that Western NdFeB capacity has stopped being a slide and started being a plant. MP Materials began magnet production at its Independence facility in Fort Worth in December 2025 and is ramping output for General Motors through 2026, with a second Northlake plant breaking ground toward roughly 10,000 tonnes a year. e-VAC Magnetics has completed its South Carolina plant (around 2,000 tonnes a year, the bulk earmarked for GM). Niron Magnetics is building a 1,500-tonne iron-nitride line in Sartell for early-2027 operation. Against this, China still makes the overwhelming majority of finished magnets, and its April 2025 controls on dysprosium and terbium remain enforced – May 2026 Chinese magnet exports fell about 35% month-on-month.
Explore the deeper analysis in CanaryIQ
Explore what is covered below. These previews show the structure; log in to read the full analysis.
Signal stack
Evidence stacked leading → lagging
7 signals
Signal stack
Evidence stacked leading → lagging
Technology-native KPIs
Metrics that predict trajectory, tracked over time
4 tracked
Technology-native KPIs
Metrics that predict trajectory, tracked over time
Landscape map
Who builds what — and who depends on whom
134 players · 6 layers
Landscape map
Who builds what — and who depends on whom
Catalyst calendar
Dated events that will move the position
5 ahead
Catalyst calendar
Dated events that will move the position
Technology roadmap
Milestones on the path to maturity
8 milestones
Technology roadmap
Milestones on the path to maturity
Watchlists
Companies, people and papers — each with a remove-by condition
20 · 20
Watchlists
Companies, people and papers — each with a remove-by condition
Decision frameworks
The same call, framed for your desk
Locked
Decision frameworks
The same call, framed for your desk
Thesis changelog
When our view changed, and why
5 updates
Thesis changelog
When our view changed, and why
Change our mind
3 disconfirming conditions
You've read the verdict. The file is much deeper.
The full signal stack, technology-native KPIs tracked over time, the landscape of who depends on whom, the dated catalyst calendar, decision frameworks for every desk, live watchlists and the changelog of every time our call on Neodymium iron boron (NdFeB) magnets has changed — all live inside CanaryIQ.