E-Mobility Tech Company Donut Lab Completes €25M Funding Round

Donut Lab recently announced it completed a seed funding round with €25 million raised. Electric vehicles tend to be identified as made by a brand such as Tesla, Chevrolet, Ford, BYD, Hyundai, Rivian, etc. There are makers of electric vehicle components too, but the press tends to focus on the brand name electric vehicle manufacturers.

If there is a set of common core components for each electric vehicle, they can be adapted to specific purposes. Adaptability may be more valuable than having one particular model of electric vehicle, though members of the public may think in terms of one model vs. a different model or one brand vs. another.

Donut Lab CEO, Mark Lehtimaki, answered some questions for CleanTechnica.

What does Donut Lab do?

Donut Lab is a Finland-based technology company, with teams also located in the UK and Estonia, providing all the core components needed to build electric vehicles — making manufacturing faster, lighter, and more efficient. We offer a complete, inter-compatible EV ecosystem designed for modular use across land, sea, and air. Our customers include OEMs in automotive, aerospace, robotics, marine, and defense sectors.

In 2025, we expanded internationally with new engineering, operations, and commercial teams, and established an R&D centre in the UK. Our goal is to simplify electrification without compromising performance or driving dynamics.

What is the five electric motor family?

It’s the world’s most powerful and versatile electric motor lineup, launched at CES 2025. Each of the five motors is designed for a different vehicle category, from scooters and motorcycles to heavy-duty trucks and drones.

The family combines direct-drive architecture, ultra-high torque and power density, and a lightweight footprint. For example, our flagship motor delivers 845 horsepower while weighing just 88 pounds — cutting weight, cost and complexity. The family is now being adopted under commercial contracts with OEMs globally.

What is the Donut Motor?

The Donut Motor is our in-wheel electric motor that integrates directly into the wheel. By eliminating gearboxes, driveshafts, and differentials, it reduces unsprung weight and simplifies vehicle design.

Its innovation lies in our motor’s distinctive shape. With a larger diameter and minimal active materials, we’re able to achieve higher torque and power density — essentially, more power and torque per kilogram — than conventional motors.

We researched the designs of how electric motors have been done before and came to the conclusion that none offered the combination of features and performance we sought. Each Donut Motor weighs under 40 kg, making it the lightest in its class, yet it still achieves industry-leading torque and efficiency. Beyond performance, it lowers drivetrain costs and opens the door to flat-floor, modular vehicle platforms.

We were inspired to start from scratch and create a new motor optimized for performance, weight and price – leading to the creation of the Donut Motor.

What is the Donut Platform?

The Donut Platform is the first fully integrated EV hardware and software stack. It includes our motors, battery modules, the “Brains” (our onboard control unit), and vehicle software — designed to work seamlessly together. It supports a wide range of vehicles and enables faster, more flexible EV development.

Modular by design, the platform lowers complexity for manufacturers and unlocks new vehicle architectures by removing traditional drivetrain constraints.

Who are your customers?

We work with OEMs across automotive, aerospace, marine, defense, and robotics. More than ten OEMs have signed commercial contracts to integrate our motor and platform technology into their upcoming vehicles.

When was the latest funding round completed and what was the amount?

We completed a €25 million funding round in July 2025. Investors include leading figures in European tech, such as Risto Siilasmaa, former Chairman of Nokia.

What will be done with the new funding?

The funding supports our global expansion, manufacturing scale-up, and continued R&D. It’s already enabled:

• Opening of a new UK R&D centre in Chippenham
• Key international hires from McLaren and BMW
• Acceleration of commercial integration programmes with OEMs
• Preparation for our flagship presence at CES 2026

This investment marks the next phase of growth as we expand across regions, product categories, and industries. We’ll be unveiling new divisions, partners and technologies over the coming months.