Beyond the Hull: How VESSEV Is Redefining Electric Boating with "Flying" Hydrofoils
What happens when a lifelong passion for the sea meets a career built at Apple? For Eric Laakmann, the answer is VESSEV, a company determined to lead the charge in the marine electrification revolution. In a recent interview on the Green Boater TV, Laakmann, the CEO of VESSEV, shared his journey and his vision for a cleaner, more efficient future on the water.
His core message is clear and compelling: the path to a sustainable marine industry isn't about incremental improvements, but about creating fundamentally better products. "It's our responsibility to make sure and create better options that are just better than petrol or diesel vessels because that's what actually creates genuine impact," Laakmann stated. "You don't do it by telling people they have to do it, you do it by just creating a better product."
The Hydro Foiling Advantage: A "Massive Hack"
The central challenge for electric vehicles on water is drag. Water is heavy, sticky, and hard to move through, making it incredibly inefficient to propel a heavy boat at high speeds. Laakmann uses a clever analogy: imagine putting a giant parachute on the back of every car. While gas-powered vehicles might suffer, electric vehicles would fail entirely due to the enormous energy drain.
This is where hydro foiling comes in. By lifting the hull out of the water, a hydro foiling vessel dramatically reduces drag. Laakmann calls this a "massive efficiency improvement that's hard to ignore," noting that hydro foiling offers a "more than 2X gain on efficiency for vehicles." It's a technological leap that solves a core problem for electric boats, much like regenerative braking did for early electric cars. He describes the engineering feat as making an "airplane that has to fly in a 50 centimeter altitude envelope for thousands of miles unimpeded in constant turbulence in a salty and corrosive solution."
Tackling the Real-World Challenges
Of course, the road to a fully electric marine future isn't without its obstacles. Laakmann identifies two primary barriers: a lack of charging infrastructure and the high initial cost (capex) of new vessels. He points out that while the world has built out power grids, they typically haven't focused on ports and marinas.
However, he sees an opportunity in the long-term economics. While a fossil-fuel boat may have a lower initial cost, it locks the owner into a costly, lifelong relationship with fuel companies. According to Laakmann, buying a gas or diesel vessel means you have "bought into a permanent lifetime subscription to BP, Exxon and Shell." The lower operating costs (OpEx) of an electric boat ultimately offer a compelling financial argument for a switch.
From Apple to the Ocean: A Personal Journey
Laakmann's background is a unique blend of personal passion and technical expertise. As a child, he sailed with his father to places like Mexico and the Galapagos, inspiring a deep connection to the water. His career at Apple, where he worked on everything from the iPod to the original Apple Watch, gave him a project-based engineering mindset. This combination of experience has been critical in leading VESSEV, helping him navigate complex technical challenges and the need to get the "first product right."
His philosophy, rooted in both engineering and a love for the natural world, is to build a better boat from the ground up, not just a greener one. As he puts it, sometimes the best solution means starting over, "like if you wanna make a great blueberry pie, you have to do it from scratch."
~The Green Boater
Find out more about Vessev: www.vessev.com
Note: This blog post contains excerpts from a full length video conversation between The Green Boater and Eric Laakmann.
Watch the original video here: https://youtu.be/loe-zzLTalQ
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