The Momentum Electric Supercar Concept Is Here, Nobody's Excited

Firstly, the Momentum was kept a secret for a long time. The company that made this concept didn’t want anyone to find out about it. No press was invited beforehand to test it, nobody published anything remotely revealing about it, and it was introduced today with a static presentation in, out of all places possible, Romania’s capital city - Bucharest.

There were rumors about a car using blockchain technology coming with an impressive setup, but nothing was confirmed or announced as a teaser. That is until we found out there are some details hidden in a document about data, secured transfers and communications, internet-of-things technology, and, as you’d expect in 2022, cryptocurrency.

That’s when we put everything we got to know together and showed it to you before its official unveiling. There weren’t any official photos available at the time, so all we had were some renders from a PDF.

Now we know all about it. Here’s what you should find out about the Momentum EV supercar concept as well.

Secondly, the company that put this car together is CryptoDATA Tech. Right now, they’re selling smartphones and laptops that come with encryption. Their products aren’t really that popular, but everybody must start from somewhere. Nothing is just handed to you. One must work to achieve one’s dream, right? Right.

The activity started all the way back in 2018 in Frankfurt, Germany, when the first voice-over-blockchain protocol (VoBP – it’s similar to VoIP that we use for WhatsApp et al.) was unveiled by CryptoDATA, and the patent for it was made public for the first time as being theirs. Since then, the company started work on several projects, including a research and development satellite that uses blockchain technology.

It was launched into the stratosphere two years ago with the help of a balloon with the goal of helping devices communicate and exchange information. Essentially, they tried to make a new Starlink that works for free and is secured with the help of blockchain technology.

They didn’t follow up after the successful launch of their balloon-powered satellite.

What about the car?

For now, we understand that this entity is all about privacy in the era of connected technology. So, what’s a car got to do with all of this? The answer is provided by the CEO himself during today’s “Decentralized Connectivity Redefined” event.

The man is, surprisingly, a petrolhead. He used to own V10s and V12s in the past, attended the Gumball 3000, and, according to his social media, remains a BMW enthusiast as he points out on multiple occasions that a BMW 3.0CSL always catches his attention and, furthermore, he even had an E46 M3.

Moreover, a couple of years ago, he told some of its followers that the only Tesla he knows is a literal hammer – which is, of course, a joke. Things took a whole other turn in just five years, as Martin Eberhard was on the same stage with him talking about the Momentum.

Ovidiu Toma, CryptoDATA’s CEO, calls the Momentum the team’s “baby” that started as a sketch in 2018. He says the point of this car is to incorporate everything the company’s developed until now.

The EV comes with a powerful computer that can connect and can communicate with other devices. It also allows for battery sharing that would minimize the time needed to charge the car. It works like NIO’s system, but instead of a new, fully charged battery, you’d get a smaller one that gives you an extra 100 km (62 mi) of range.

But the thing that attracts our attention the most is its modular platform: besides the structural stuff, everything can be upgraded or changed. It sounds futuristic when it comes to software, but it’s actually just over-the-air updates – something that was made popular by Tesla, and now all major carmakers already have.

True modularity comes when we learn that owners could hypothetically add another electric motor for some extra cash and turn the rear-wheel-drive Momentum into an all-wheel-drive EV supercar. A good comparison would be with Google’s Project Ara, which never made it into production. This might hint at something!

Thirdly, the COO of the company, Madalin Neagu, climbs on the stage and says the prototype has “impressive performance,” and it offers four driving modes: efficient, performance, track, and individual. The screen behind him shows the concept is capable of 600 kW (804 HP), it can achieve 100 kph (62 mph) in 2.4 seconds and has a top speed of 220 km/h with a range of 350-400 km (217-248 mi). The coupe also has rear-hinged butterfly doors.

The Romanian-designed and Romanian-built Momentum EV concept will also pack multiple artificial intelligence systems that will, in the end, help owners not drive anymore.

The interior of the car looks interesting, but it lacks a personal touch. Images show it like it has a spartan cabin, which should be fit for a supercar that can do well on the track.

Martin Eberhard’s contribution

Fourthly, the co-founder and former CEO of Tesla, Martin Eberhard, was also on stage. He said he was delighted to see “new players in the EV revolution” and was glad he got the chance to see where the future is taking us all. And that was it. He then started talking about how the first Tesla Roadster appeared, what challenges the world faces when it comes to powering the human civilization, why software updates must become safer and more complex, and why we should strive to make EVs as good as possible.

Certainly, this did not help much.

And now the reality check comes in: like the Project Ara, the Momentum will never be sold, which means it will never make it into production. The company tried the Sony strategy, but, unlike the blockchain enthusiasts, the Walkman creator is pushing, on and it will manufacture a production version of its concept with Honda’s help.

Still, we shouldn’t minimize the effort these men and women put in. Cars turned into products, into devices that lacked passion long before anyone could have a say in the matter. With full electrification that is now available as a $5,000 kit for some internal combustion engine cars, opportunity comes knocking. Today you can use a concept car as a testbed, and there’s nothing anyone can’t say to you because, in the end, it’s a great idea.

If your services or products fit in a contemporary car and they allow for improving parts of our daily lives or help catch the attention of established players in a certain industry, then why not do it?

Finally, we will keep our eyes on the company as they promised that a revised version of the Momentum is coming soon with a different type of carbon fiber monocoque. Maybe that’ll be the winner they’re looking for, and it will make it into production. Until then, all we got now from the company was a showpiece and nothing more.