The auto industry’s biggest hardware problems all meet in one part: the motor. We’re taking them on from the wire up.
Rare earths, cost, heat, switching stress, wasted energy, noise, integration and failure. Every carmaker is working down this list, and most of it traces back to the motor’s magnetic field: where it comes from, and the fact that it can’t be turned down.
Most EV motors depend on neodymium magnets, mined and refined almost entirely in one country. Export controls on them have already stopped production lines.
We will develop a motor that creates its own magnetic field with electricity instead of relying on permanent magnets. It will need far fewer rare-earth magnets, or none at all, so no country’s export rules will be able to shut down the production line.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s targets call for 50 kW per litre at $3.30 per kW. The industry is chasing them by spinning smaller motors ever faster.
Rare-earth magnets are one of the most expensive parts of a motor today. We will develop a motor that reaches the same targets for size and cost without them.
Peak power is limited by how fast a motor can shed heat, and permanent magnets lose strength when they run hot.
Permanent magnets weaken when they get too hot, which forces the motor to hold back. We will develop a motor whose field comes from electric current, so heat won’t weaken it the same way. On a cold day, the same windings will also warm the drivetrain.
Silicon-carbide inverters at 800 volts switch so fast that stray currents pit the bearings and stress the winding insulation.
Most carmakers design the motor and the electronics that drive it separately, then make them fit. We will develop the two together from the start, so the motor will be built for fast, high-voltage electronics from day one.
A permanent magnet’s field is always on. At highway speed and light load, the motor spends energy fighting its own field.
A permanent magnet is always at full strength, even at highway speed when you need very little power, and that wastes energy. We will develop a motor that turns its field up for acceleration and down for cruising, so it will use only what the moment needs.
With no engine to cover it, motor whine from torque ripple and harmonics becomes what drivers hear.
Much of a motor’s whine comes from a field that can’t be adjusted. We will develop a motor whose field can be shaped, so it will run more smoothly and quietly.
Motor, inverter, charger and heat pump are being merged into single e-axles to cut cost and weight.
Instead of adding more separate parts, we will develop a motor that does more than one job. The same hardware that turns the wheels will also warm the drivetrain and monitor its own health.
A single failed wire or switch can strand a car. For robotaxis and aircraft, that isn’t an inconvenience. It’s the whole problem.
We will develop a motor that keeps running smoothly even when a wire or switch fails, so the car will get you to a repair shop instead of leaving you waiting for a tow truck.
A variable-flux motor. Rare-earth torque density, a field it controls itself (strong for launch, weak for cruise) and zero rare-earth metals. Early prototypes exist. Nobody has reached full automotive power density at scale. That’s the motor we will develop.
Secure more magnets.
Make the field on command.
It will need far fewer rare-earth magnets, or none at all. No export policy will decide whether the line keeps running.
It will drive smoothly through a broken wire or a failed switch, all the way to the workshop.
The same hardware that turns the wheels will also warm the drivetrain on a frozen morning, deliver an extra kick off the line, and watch its own health. Fewer parts, less weight, less to break.
No exotic materials, no science-fair manufacturing. It will be designed to slot into today’s production lines.
Every world-class hub started somewhere. Silicon Valley was orchards once. It took a few people who decided not to wait for permission.
Why not us.
Why not here.
Why not now.
Carmakers / Drivetrain suppliers / Fleets / Anything that can’t afford to be stranded
The motor is the heart of every electric vehicle, and it’s due for a rethink. If you’d rather redesign it than keep sourcing magnets for it, we should talk.
Electromagnetics people who think in flux paths, windings and losses.
Introduce yourself →Inverter designers who care what happens the moment a switch fails.
Introduce yourself →Control and embedded software people who keep a machine smooth through the unexpected.
Introduce yourself →People who know what a real production line will and won’t accept.
Introduce yourself →Partnerships, product and operations people who want to put this on the road.
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For investors, carmakers, drivetrain suppliers and fleet operators who want motors that don’t depend on a single supplier.