"The 4680 cell is in itself superior to the current widespread 2170 electric vehicle battery pack. It offers five times the energy density" This is totally incorrect. Daniel, energy density is measured per unit of volume or mass. Mass and volume also increase with 4680. There are some marginal improvements in energy density due to less packaging
Samsung has been a market leader in making cylindrical batteries for a while now, even before Panasonic or LG jumped in. Besides the 4680 battery for Tesla, it is developing longer, harder to produce cells with higher capacity.