BMW has invested in DeepDrive, a German startup developing a new “ultra-efficient” electric vehicle motor type.
The €15m Series A funding round also saw investment from UVC Partners, the Continental Corporate Venture Capital Unit, and former board member and CTO of Audi and Volvo, Peter Mertens.
The Munich-based startup, founded in 2021, claims to have created a radial flux dual-rotor motor with the best torque and power density of any EV motor available today. It also emits little noise and uses significantly fewer rare earth elements.
Electric cars (including hybrids) accounted for 35% of all new vehicle sales in Europe in 2022, up from 10% in 2020. Nonetheless, EVs are still costly to produce, and the limited range of many models continues to be a barrier for manufacturers. This is pushing demand for smaller, lighter, and more powerful motors.
DeepDrive’s drive unit results in a car that travels 20% further and uses 20% less battery power than competitors. That may not seem like much, but this gain in efficiency might result in significant cost savings during an EV’s lifecycle, and automakers appear to agree.
DeepDrive plans to begin manufacturing the dual-rotors and grow its workforce now that it has received new funding.