The rising global energy demand and environmental impact of traditional energy resources pose serious challenges to human health, energy security, and environmental protection. One promising solution is fuel cell technology, which provides clean and sustainable power. Besides, the catalytic performance of many non-precious metal catalysts still needs to be further improved to meet the requirement for practical applications. These special physicochemical properties, in turn, allow for controlled structural modifications of fullerenes, leading to the formation of various advanced fullerene derivatives with appropriate properties for many potential applications.