The ex-racing driver is trying to achieve what Tesla has been able to do with electromobility in recent years.
(Photo: Hopium)
Paris A decade ago, Olivier Lombard showed up for work in a body suit covered in sponsor names. The Frenchman started in junior series in motorsport, he also took part in the 24-hour race of Le Mans. But it wasn’t enough for the premier class of Formula 1.
The 31-year-old now wears a suit and tie. He is sitting in a posh Parisian hotel and is talking about the “Machina”, a luxury car with a hydrogen drive. His new goal sounds even more daring than the earlier dream of Formula 1: With his start-up Hopium, founded in 2019, Lombard hopes to achieve what Tesla has achieved in recent years with electromobility.
“We will be the first to market with a product in the high-end segment when it comes to hydrogen propulsion,” says Lombard. As potential buyers, he sees “drivers who are enthusiastic about technology” who “are not necessarily convinced that electric mobility is the only environmentally friendly solution”. Then, he believes, the technology can be “democratized” with more affordable models.
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