A team of veteran engineers, whose careers included tenures at Lucid Motors and Apple’s electric vehicle project, have introduced a new startup aimed at shaking up the electric motor sector. Called Conifer, the company has developed an innovative hub motor that notably avoids rare earth elements, instead utilizing abundant ferrite magnets. Conifer claims this approach not only significantly lowers production costs but also alleviates risks associated with sensitive global supply chains. Additionally, the startup’s proprietary stator design promises superior efficiency and increased power output, all packed compactly into a unit roughly half the size of existing models.
The timing of this venture coincides with rising geopolitical tensions and ongoing trade disputes between the U.S. and China, creating an advantageous environment for technologies looking to minimize reliance on complex international supply chains. Conifer’s promising technology has attracted notable financial backing, recently securing a $20 million seed funding round. The funding was led by leading deep-tech investors, including True Ventures, MaC Ventures, and MFV Partners, among others. Rohit Sharma of True Ventures will take a seat on Conifer’s board to help steer the startup forward.
Conifer enters a market already energized by recent advances in electric motor technology. Companies in Europe, such as Germany’s DeepDrive and Finland’s Donut Lab, have also been proposing innovative solutions designed to improve performance, increase efficiency, and lower costs. Simultaneously, the cost of batteries—often the highest expense in electric vehicles—has not decreased as drastically in recent years, making efficiency gains elsewhere increasingly valuable.
Initially, Conifer plans to target smaller mobility applications, marketing its motors as direct “drop-in” replacements that allow customers to upgrade without the need for extensive design modifications. The startup envisions demand across various vehicle formats, including scooters, motorcycles, off-road vehicles, and small electric cars. Beyond traditional vehicles, the company already sees promising interest from manufacturers of lawn equipment, agricultural machinery, and even HVAC systems. Conifer says it already has multiple global customers lined up, with intentions to ship the first production-ready motors by the end of this year.
During an interview, Conifer co-founder Ankit Somani explained that the company’s drive came partly from frustration—specifically, the lack of attention and investment directed toward electric drivetrains compared to battery technology.
“In batteries, you saw tremendous investment at every level—cathodes, anodes, electrolytes—but very little attention to powertrains,” Somani pointed out. “We recognized a gap: there weren’t enough innovators tackling traction motors from the ground up.”
This insight shaped Conifer’s unique design and production strategies. By utilizing widely available magnets, Conifer can build local manufacturing facilities with shorter supply lines. The team is also adopting a phased automation approach, beginning by applying highly automated assembly processes only to critical sub-components, eventually expanding as the company grows. Somani emphasized that this careful strategy aims to avoid overly ambitious manufacturing schemes that have plagued others—such as Arrival—which ultimately failed before scaling their automated microfactory concept.
According to Somani, Conifer’s simpler motor designs offer greater confidence in successful automated manufacturing, contrasting sharply with the complexity of automobile assembly.
“Each motor is one to two orders of magnitude simpler than an entire car,” Somani commented, “which significantly reduces our manufacturing risk. We’ll start with a single country initially; based on market response and local demand, we’ll replicate success in other regions.”
Selling this kind of innovation to large customers can pose particular challenges, Somani acknowledged. Established companies tend to be cautious, wary of potential instability when engaging with startups. Therefore, Conifer focuses on simplifying the initial value proposition.
“The conversation becomes straightforward,” Somani explained. “You’ve already got a wheel with a standard hub motor installed. Replace it with ours, drop-in without any complex changes, and immediately gain around 10% range improvement. Once the initial value proves clear, discussions around costs, supply chain benefits, and future growth opportunities quickly follow.”
