Imagine standing beneath the sun with your friends, and one of you gets the idea out of nowhere and decides to use the sun to revolutionize the automobile industry. This is how Laurin Hann, one of the co-founders of Sono Motors, decided to change the world one day.

Sono Motors is a German start-up company that specializes in designing solar-powered vehicles, most notably the Sono Sion. The company was founded in Karben, 2016, by three fellow founders Laurin Hahn, Jona Christians, and Navina Pernsteiner.

The inventions of these three young entrepreneurs are expected to change the automotive world, and hopefully, more car manufacturers will use the sun’s energy to power their cars.

This is the story of three open-minded friends who decided to harvest the sun’s energy in the right way - this is the story of the principal founders of Sono Motors.

Formulating the Perfect Idea

Laurin, who also serves as the chief executive officers at Sono Motors, founded his first project at the age of 17! After graduating from high school in 2012, together with these two friends Jona Christians and Navina Pernsteiner embarked on a journey to fulfill their dreams - harvest the energy of the sun and use it to power for the greater good as all team members wanted to relieve the world of fossil fuels.

They believe in a world without fossil fuels, which was their idea’s driving force. In late 2012, Laurin had already developed his plan to design an eclectic vehicle capable of everyday use, and that will be equipped with a battery that is charged by the sun.

In 2015, the team gathered all of their savings from their many previous projects and decided to transform conventional vehicles into electric ones, and there was no going back from this!

What Led to Sono Motors

Laurin, Jona, and Navina have decided to try out a prototype before the final release can be created. Laurin’s vision was a sustainable mobility concept, a car that won’t run on any fossil fuel. The idea was to have a vehicle that is powered strictly by the sun, and its owner won’t have to use electrical power to charge the battery. The team was eager to release a revolutionary transporting vehicle that would help the environment by using sustainable and renewed energy from the former SAAB factory in Sweden.

The team was driven by the idea to create a solar-powered car, but that wasn’t it. Their ultimate goal was to create other transport vehicles such as buses, trains, and even boats that will run on solar energy in the future.

At the start of 2016, Laurin and his friends succeeded in their goals, and the first prototype was created and put to the test. The three friends managed to convert a fossil fuel car into an electric one, with its battery being charged by the sun - and nothing more!

Laurin, Jona, and Navina’s idea was now in motion, and there was nothing that could stop it - a new revolutionary product was right around the corner.

Sono Motors Goes Live!

In mid-2016, Laurin and his friends were ready for the final release. After a successful crowdfunding campaign by Laurel, the team was prepared for their ultimate goal - Sono Motors GmbH went live in 2016, and Laurin was named a CEO, and with his two partners taking the lead in other sectors. The trio’s Sono Motors were presented to the public in early 2017. The idea was to be more than creative, so they decided to become a pioneer in this industry.

Later that year, Laurin, working with his two co-founders, started developing the first-ever Sono Motors vehicle named Sion. To this date, the Sion model is the only car in production by the company, and it’s expected to make a boom in the automotive market. Their vision to create a hybrid vehicle is now in motion, and with the help of his lifelong friends, his ultimate life goal is nearly complete.

In 2021, Laurin and his colleagues decided to take the company public, and finally, on November 17th, Sono Motors GmbH, the company, was listed on NASDAQ and went public the following day. The SEV shares of Laurin's Company have started at a price of $15 per one, according to statements from Laurin himself.

So far, the company has managed to raise over $12 billion, as per reports from NASDAQ.

Despite the success, the team didn’t have it easy from the start. First, they had issues converting a conventional car from gas to solar energy, and they needed the perfect car to accomplish this. It took them three years to convert a basic vehicle into a solar one, with many failed attempts to do it in a shorter time.

Another problem they were faced with, was convincing people that their idea worked. And while it was difficult in the beginning, Navina’s natural communication skills and network of contacts helped paved their way to success.

The First Buyers

For any startup business success is about the money, rather its customers. Laurin’s idea was recognized by many, and today, months before the Sion model hits the market, over 15,000 customers have ordered the car. It’s expected that the first customers will be people who are willing to try out something new and more ecological.

Laurin expects his product to bring something new to the table, with more and more potential customers arriving in the near future. Laurin and his team have designed the car to be affordable for most buyers and offer high-tech and quality components in it.

The Sono Sion electric car is expected to hit the market by early 2023, when the first customers will have the chance to witness the new miracle in the automotive industry. Since Laurin’s prototype version of the Sion turns out to be a total success, there’s no doubt that the full release will shake all first customers to the core!

Currently, the price of the vehicles is still unknown due to its development phase.

How is Sono Motors Doing Today?

Today, Sono Motors enjoys huge success in the global car market. Even though their first vehicle is yet to be revealed, there are many customers that made a pre-order and are waiting for the final release. On November 18, 2021, Lauren and his team made the biggest discussion and took Sono Motors public. The IPO initially started from $15, but it quickly rose to $38.74 before the market closed that day.

Besides working on the Sion, Laurin and his team did not stop there. The partners have bigger plans for Sono Motors, and it won’t limit the company to just one car. The future ideas are to implement Sono Motors into other transport vehicles - solar busses, trains, trucks, and even boats!

Today, there are a total of 16,525 reservations for the company’s top model Sion, and the estimated number of produced vehicles is expected to be around 257,000. Sion is using 100% renewable energy materials from SAAB’s former factory in Sweden.

Today, Laurin Hahn remains the CEO of Sono Motors, with no plans to leave the company any time soon. His company, which started from scratch, is now worth 12 billion dollars because of its innovative product. Together with his friends Jona and Navina, Laurin will continue to work at changing the world as we know it!