Electric motorcycle pioneer Verge Motorcycles has created a subsidiary called Donut Lab to accelerate the development of EVs (electric vehicles) by bringing all the components needed for EVs onto a single platform and making it available to all industry operators.

Behind the move is the huge potential it sees in the electrification of mobility. According to research from Fortune Business Insights cited by the company, the global electric transportation market is expected to grow from $550 billion to $4.4 trillion by 2032.

“Verge TS is the world’s most advanced electric motorcycle,” said Marko Lehtimäki, CEO of Donut Lab, and Co-founder & CTO of Verge Motorcycles. “When developing it, we learned how difficult and slow it is to build electric vehicles using traditional mechanisms. The reason for this is that vehicles are built with components from different equipment manufacturers and are not designed to work together; integration work always takes up most of the time. We decided that if we were able to solve this, we would change the entire automotive industry.”

One of the main components of the company’s technology platform is the donut-shaped motor, which it says allows better performance than other electric motors in all vehicle categories. In addition to this, a motor installed directly in the wheel eliminates the need for a drivetrain, making it simpler, lighter, and more affordable to manufacture vehicles. Other important platform components include battery modules, computer units, and vehicle control software.

The modular architecture guarantees that the components can be used to build various vehicles including robots. Components are available in a range of sizes and performance classes. They can be used as standalone components, with a manufacturer incorporating a donut motor into a vehicle built using traditional mechanisms or combined to form “a seamless entity and ensure unprecedented performance.”

“We want to set a new standard for what electric transportation can achieve,” said Ville Piippo, Product Director of Donut Lab, and Chief Product Officer at Verge Motorcycles. “The Donut platform creates entirely new opportunities for almost any industry. In the future, those utilizing the platform will be able to select the components they want from a catalog and connect them with standard connectors, after which everything is ready.”

The platform concept is said by the company to significantly speed up the development cycle of EVs and can reduce the resource requirements for vehicle development by up to 95% compared to the current level. It adds that work that used to take several years can now be completed in a matter of months.

One of the platform’s biggest benefits is said to be its scalability to suit a variety of applications such as hypercars, helicopters, robots, and even space mission all-terrain vehicles. Donut Lab has already attracted “a lot of interest” from vehicle manufacturers, and the company has agreed to collaborate with various operators to use the platform for both the electrification of existing vehicles and for the manufacturing of completely new vehicles.

Oruga, a Latvian startup that manufactures off-road EVs, has used the Donut Lab platform in the development of its Unitrack, covered by Futurride here. The futuristic combination of a snowmobile and a motorcycle is on display for the first time at the Slush 2024 startup event in Helsinki this week.

“Donut Lab sets a new standard for the industry, and the company’s technology platform allows for unprecedented configuration and performance that no other competitor can offer,” said Erick Pastor, CEO of Oruga. “No other operator has been able to achieve this level of innovation, and we are excited to be part of it.”

With a tilting and steering user experience like a motorcycle and an “unbeatable” ground contact area, the invention is intended to be a reliable off-road solution for loose sand, muddy forests, rocky climbs, and snowy landscapes. Its innovative track system, frame, suspension, and electric powertrain enable it to carry one or two people, handle various equipment, reverse easily, tackle high obstacles, and deliver exceptional traction and climbing power.

Its powertrain is classified as an electric/hybrid, with an under-development battery pack helping to enable a range of 100 or 200 km (62 or 124 mi) in electric or hybrid versions, respectively, with extra battery cell containers for longer trips. With 90 kW, its maximum speed is up to 100 km/h (62 mph).

Hyper Q Aerospace, the Australian startup, uses the Donut platform in its high speed, high payload, remotely piloted, electric RotorHawk rotorcraft. Conceived to be configurable and scalable, the RotorHawk’s rotor head uses patented aerodynamic engineering incorporating rotor slowing and retreating blade stall mitigation to allow it to fly almost twice as fast as a conventional, single-rotor-disk helicopter or most styles of multi-rotor, air mobility designs.

The company can scale the rotorcraft by increasing the size or number of stackable electric motors of the “revolutionary” no-gearbox electric drive. A range of rotor blades can be fitted to the rotor head to offer heavy lift (in excess of 3 tons) to medium weight, highly agile, and very fast vertical takeoff and landing transport.