Electric motor pioneer Monumo plans to make it big in Japan

Japan is acknowledged as an automotive powerhouse and is home to some of the world's largest and most innovative automotive original equipment manufacturers including Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki, Mazda, and Subaru. The country is also at the forefront of Electric Vehicle technology, with the Government setting ambitious targets for EV adoption. Shujiro Imamura has held senior roles at Rosenberger Automotive and Mitsui Electronics.

He will be responsible for business development in the region and facilitating key connections. Monumo's AI-powered motor design tool, Anser (R), which can generate 800,000 motor designs in 72 hours, has already captured the attention of the influential Nikkei Tech Foresight with Editor-in-Chief, Hideyoshi Kume, commenting on the potential for the technology to significantly enhance optimisation efficiency. Dominic Vergine, CEO of Monumo, says: "Monumo's technology offers the potential for new products that are both cheaper and perform better.

In addition, we can help accelerate the design of new products from months to just weeks. "This helps the giant engineering companies of Europe and Japan to remain competitive against the emerging disruptive competitors. With its incredible heritage in high-quality, complex engineering, Japan feels a natural next market for Monumo alongside Europe.

"We are delighted with the level and breadth of interest that we are already experiencing with some of the greatest Japanese automotive and engineering brands." Earlier in June, Monumo revealed that it had achieved an 11 per cent reduction in the bill of materials (BOM) including a 23 per cent reduction in magnet volume from an EV powertrain and without compromising efficiency. For OEMs, these advancements could mean up to 50 million Euros in cost savings for every million motors produced - and again Asia could be key for vastly different reasons.

The emergence of low-cost EV competition in China means that traditional automotive powerhouses are under pressure to reduce the production cost of an EV powertrain as a key priority. In March, a McKinsey report recommended that accelerating product development cycles and the reduction of product costs were both integral to the European automotive industry regaining competitiveness. Through its partnership with hofer powertrain to reduce powertrain development timeframes, and now these new cost-saving advancements, Monumo says it has demonstrated the potential of its Anser(R) Engine to achieve significant reductions on both.

While battery prices are forecasted to drop significantly (Goldman Sachs predicts nearly 50 per cent by 2026) and charging speeds are improving, the electric motor remains the critical frontier for cost reduction if EVs are to truly compete on price with internal combustion engine vehicles. Vergine said: "From working with a number of global OEMs and Tier 1s, it's clear that the pressure to remove cost from electric motors has never been more acute. Permanent magnets account for 30-50 per cent of the total cost of an EV motor.

"Monumo can, today, reduce the use of permanent magnets by almost a quarter with a total cost per unit reduction of over 11 per cent - all whilst maintaining the same motor efficiency. "Our Anser Engine is already reaching new heights that surpass human ability, but these results are just the beginning. If European manufacturers adopt AI, along with the continued reduction in battery costs and reduced charging times, the price point can become competitive with ICE vehicles.

Even more importantly, it offers Europe a better chance at competing with the Chinese EVs currently flooding the market."