[8] Granqvist received the PhD degree in physics at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1974.

[1] Granqvist has been involved in the development of several technology companies, including Radicool and Coat AB (formed 1986).

[11][13][2] Granqvist introduced the term "smart window" in the 1980s, brainstorming ideas with scientists from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California to make building materials more energy efficient.

[11] He has developed electrochromic glass for ‘‘intelligent windows’’ by using coatings of tungsten-doped vanadium dioxide to detect and change with environmental conditions.

[14][2] Granqvist's work as both a researcher and teacher has significantly driven Sweden's development of electrochromic materials.