The Waves of Struggle for Electric Boat Companies
- Kevin Rodgers
- Sep 7
- 3 min read
My mentor's warning saved me from sinking financially and physically. However, in the real world of marine tech advancements, the struggle is to stay on top of the waves of "business physics". On July 19, 2024, Pure Watercraft entered receivership. This wasn't some garage startup like I WASN'T even prepared for. No this was a company and team that General Motors invested $150 million for a 25% stake (Turnford Consulting, 2024, p. 2). Still, they struggled to make it. The numbers are brutal: 70% of staff laid off. Over 900 customers with deposits in limbo. 750,000 lithium battery cells sitting in a warehouse, unsellable after regulatory changes flooded the market. Innovation isn't easy because of what it takes to actually innovate, THEN there is the regulatory, financial, and legal waves to weather.
Vision Marine Technologies faired better, but barely. Pre-tax profit margin: negative 247.5%. Return on assets: negative 33.85% (Vision Marine Technologies, 2025, p. 7). Their stock dropped from $4.87 to $1.88 in a single day. The company leadership broken.
“Any companies going bankrupt right now is more a factor of believing in an unrealistic ramp and creating a cost structure that the fundraising couldn't sustain.” — Jon Roskill, Board Member, X Shore (GeekWire, 2024, p. 5)
The pattern is clear. Propulsion systems, battery configurations, hull designs and even a sincere effort at the finances and correct business model and structure still DO NOT guarantee success .
Case Study: What $150 Million Couldn't Buy
What someone like me... On the outside, would think is, "What happened?" They had everything right? GM's backing, proven technology, customer deposits. Again, the receiver's report tells the real story:
“$150 million from GM, and they couldn't keep the lights on in West Virginia. The facility that was supposed to build “the next generation of boats”(Turnford Consulting, 2024, p. 2).
Think about that. $150 million from GM, to build “the next generation of boats”. The batteries tell another story. 750,000 cells that basically became worthless when “regulation caused a major sell-off, which flooded the market” (Turnford Consulting, 2024, p. 3). One rule change. Value destroyed.
David Donovick of Zin Boats summed it up: “We need more boat bros, less tech bros, because building boats is hard” (GeekWire, 2024, p. 6).
This is the wicked-real problem facing electric boat start-ups. It's not JUST about technology. It's about understanding that the ocean, the market, even the consumer don't really care about a business model. Even sometime you need more than everything you've actually got.
What We Learn from these Sincere Efforts
Every effort, whether we consider them "successful" give us clues and shoulders to stand on for the next try. I salute Pure Watercraft & Vision Marine for these real tech advances. They stormed the beach first, and paved the way if we are wise. Money alone won't solve engineering problems. The public really does establish the markets and those who will try again must brace themselves for the harsh realities. Those 750,000 batteries remind us that regulatory risk can destroy a business overnight.
I hope the founders and survivors of those efforts won't stop dreaming and investing in a brighter tomorrow for all of us. I humbly stand on the shore in respect of the water, because it IS TO BE RESPECTED. The electric boat revolution WILL continue to happen. More will storm the beach again and again until a breakthrough is made by those who try and fail, but study, reflect and try again and again and again.
Instead of trying to building A boat, I built a research infrastructure to understand how to help the transition to electric marine propulsion.
Now, I know my mentor was right. DON'T DO IT. Not until you understand what “it” really cost.
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