The market for Electric vehicles is growing rapidly. Automotive manufacturers are faced with the challenge of providing powerful drives without incurring high costs or new production lines. The Munich-based deep-tech startup Hyperdrives has developed a solution that makes electric motors more efficient and scalable.
Financing for industrialization of technology
Rethink Ventures, First Momentum Ventures, SDAC, Acequia Capital, 2100 Ventures, Prototype Capital, and several angel investors participated in the oversubscribed pre-seed financing round. Together, they provide Hyperdrives 3 million euros. Hyperdrives intends to use the capital to secure the sustainability of its technology, accelerate market launch, and expand production capacity.
The core innovation of Hyperdrives is waveguide cooling: This involves feeding a dielectric coolant directly into the motor's copper windings. This allows the continuous current density to be increased threefold compared to conventional motors.
"Our breakthrough is making waveguide cooling usable for mass production. By cooling directly in the copper conductor, we achieve a current density up to three times higher than today's motors: more power in the same space or the same power in a smaller, lighter housing,"
explains co-founder Michael Numberger.
Motorsport know-how for the mass market
Hyperdrives was founded in 2021 by Michael Numberger, Benjamin Hengstler, and Robin Renz. The startup has so far developed three product generations in-house and tested them under demanding conditions. According to the company, the Munich-based startup already achieved revenues of over one million euros in 2024, without external financing.
The product range includes the Hyperdrives One automotive drive unit with SiC inverter and a high-performance drive unit for electric aircraft. Applications in the marine sector are also conceivable.
Matthias Schanze, General Partner at Rethink Ventures, is enthusiastic:
"Hyperdrives solves one of the biggest challenges in electromobility: combining record-breaking performance with true scalability. Their waveguide platform is the first I've encountered that combines motorsport-level performance with automotive-level manufacturability and cost. That's why we're excited to support the Hyperdrives team and lead this oversubscribed financing round."
With the funding, Hyperdrives plans to conduct extensive automotive-standard durability testing and expand commercial projects with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers. The goal is to make the technology viable on an industrial scale through licensing agreements.
