The transition to electric mobility brings new strategic challenges: The reliance on rare earth elements for today’s standard permanent magnet motors is not only a critical factor in terms of cost but also poses geopolitical risks. Maximilian Güttinger and Johannes Unhold, the founders of the startup Emil Motors, are addressing this very issue with a new drive concept: Their company is developing an axial-flow asynchronous motor that operates entirely without rare earths or magnets. At the VDI Congress Dritev, CEO Maximilian Güttinger will provide insights into the current state of development and the path ahead toward series production readiness. He answered our questions in advance.
An Electric Motor Without Rare Earth Elements or Magnets: A Revolution in the Powertrain?
Source: Emil Motors
Maximilian Güttinger (left) and Johannes Unhold at the test bench at the University of the German Armed Forces in Munich.
Mister Güttinger, permanent magnet motors are now the standard for battery-electric drives. What led you to challenge this paradigm and opt for asynchronous motors?
Maximilian Güttinger: My co-founder Johannes Unhold and I began intensively studying the environmental and geopolitical challenges associated with rare earth mining about five years ago and started looking for alternatives. In our view, the path to the asynchronous motor is clear, as this motor requires no brushes and the rotor is an extremely simple component compared to a separately excited motor. However, we realized that traditional asynchronous designs face challenges with efficiency and the use of expensive copper in the rotor. For months, we analyzed a wide variety of windings and topologies and eventually came across the axial-flow asynchronous motor. This topology opens up new possibilities for modifying the geometry and achieving high efficiency levels using different materials.
A common criticism of induction motors is the losses in the rotor caused by slip. How do you address this efficiency issue?
Maximilian Güttinger: Slip itself does not necessarily make the motor inefficient; what matters are the associated losses in the rotor. Our goal was to use a highly conductive material to keep resistance in the rotor low. Thanks to a special axial-flow geometry, we can incorporate a large amount of conductive material into the rotor, thereby significantly reducing rotor losses in the machine. To achieve this, we use aluminum instead of heavy and expensive copper.
That brings us straight to the topic of material costs and supply chains. How does the cost-effectiveness of your engine compare to the current standard?
Maximilian Güttinger: On the stator side, we use a traditional copper winding, so in that respect we are comparable to current machines. The key difference lies in the rotor. We are replacing approximately two kilograms of rare earth elements with three to four kilograms of aluminum. As is well known, this material is not only lightweight and durable, but also readily available thanks to global supply chains. In terms of material costs alone, this enables savings in the three-digit euro range per motor. Furthermore, the cost gap is widening: in the first few months of 2026 alone, the price of rare earths has risen by 40 percent. For materials such as dysprosium and heavy rare earths, there are already some supply difficulties.
For which vehicle classes and power ranges is your technology ideally suited? Are there any design-related limitations?
Maximilian Güttinger: For slightly larger motors starting at around 150 kilowatts, switching to an axial-flow induction motor makes the most sense. This drive concept is also highly promising for hybrid applications or heavy-duty vehicles such as electric trucks. However, packaging considerations must be taken into account. The axial-flow motor we have developed is narrow but has a comparatively larger diameter than standard electric drives. A simple replacement in an existing drive architecture is therefore likely to be challenging. It is more effective to redesign the entire powertrain as a system, including the transmission, ideally as early as possible in platform development.
Source: Emil Motors
The axial-flow induction motor performs very well on the test bench, as seen here at Nuremberg University of Applied Sciences.
Why is a young startup able to achieve such growth, while large suppliers often stick to established approaches?
Maximilian Güttinger: A large, established supplier must first maximize the utilization of its existing production lines and ensure they pay for themselves. Converting these facilities to the new motor technology is effectively impossible. As a small, young company, however, we have the freedom to rethink things from the ground up. Our approach differs radically from the conventional: every part looks different, every process step is new. The manufacture of laminated cores or the winding of coils requires specially developed processes, for which we have devised solutions to reduce process times in mass production. These innovations are protected by patents.
How do you assess the current competitive landscape? Are there other companies pursuing a similar technological approach?
Maximilian Güttinger: There are certainly other approaches that aim to eliminate the use of rare earths in electric drives. However, I am not aware of any project that could be compared to our concept in terms of the level of development already achieved. About fifteen years ago, an Australian company had a concept with similarities in axial flux, but it used a completely different stator design and has since switched to permanent magnets. Today, the primary competitors are more likely to be alternative technologies such as ferrite motors or separately excited synchronous machines, which are already at a more advanced stage of development. The separately excited machine offers the advantage of fitting into existing installation spaces, but comes with cost disadvantages due to the copper windings in the rotor and slip rings. The axial-flow induction motor is therefore the next logical step for further cost reductions and efficiency gains. Of course, these advantages still need to be confirmed through extensive long-term testing. The initial simulations have been successful, but physical endurance tests are still pending.
You and your co-founder have been working full-time on this project for almost three years. You even dropped out of college to do it. What led you to take this bold step?
Maximilian Güttinger: We began to wonder whether time was running out for us as we developed our propulsion concept. To put it bluntly: our studies aren’t going anywhere, but the opportunity to make a real impact in this specific market environment is limited. Through our work on Emil Motors, we’ve gained an incredible amount of practical knowledge. We’re still very happy with the decision we made.
You’ll be presenting the concept at Dritev in June. How far along are you at this point, what’s your timeline for reaching production, and what partnerships are you seeking?
Maximilian Güttinger: Over the past six months, we have successfully completed bench tests. Since February, we have been working with an improved version of the drive system and have achieved excellent results that confirm our software calculations. At Dritev, we will discuss these very advancements with manufacturers and decision-makers. The next logical step is the development of customer-specific prototypes and proof-of-concept machines tailored to exact customer requirements. After that, we will focus entirely on mass production. We realistically anticipate series production starting in 2030, and perhaps as early as 2029 with particularly fast-moving partners. To this end, we are seeking collaboration with strong Tier 1 suppliers. Our focus is clearly on the motor. The expertise for inverters, transmissions, and the final mass production of the entire system remains in the hands of established companies. This complements each other perfectly.
One last question: What’s the story behind the company name “Emil Motors“?
Maximilian Güttinger: My co-founder and I met at the local gliding club. There, they use vehicles that are old but extremely reliable and sturdy to tow the gliders across the field. These cars—such as an old Golf Diesel—are simply called “Emils” there. This served as the perfect model for a robust, simple, and affordable electric drive system.
About:
Source: Emil Motors
Maximilian Güttinger is a co-founder and CEO of the startup Emil Motors. Together with Johannes Unhold, he is developing a novel electric motor concept that does not use rare earth elements or magnets. Previously, he focused extensively on the technological and geopolitical aspects of electric mobility.