Marko Lehtimäki
The Man Who Put a Motor Inside a Wheel
Finnish software and hardware entrepreneur Marko Lehtimäki co-founded the no-code platform AppGyver, sold to SAP in 2021, served as technology chief of Verge Motorcycles, maker of a hubless electric superbike, and in 2024 founded Donut Lab, whose in-wheel motors and contested solid-state battery claims have drawn global attention.
- 16 min listen
- No-code pioneer
- Electric motorcycles
- Donut Lab founder
Marko Lehtimäki’s full 16 min audio biography, The Man Who Put a Motor Inside a Wheel, is available on Lyfestori for iOS. Listen to a free preview below.
A life in brief
Marko Lehtimäki: life and timeline.
He has described himself as a restless pupil who found his focus in code. Marko Lehtimäki co-founded the no-code platform AppGyver with the rapper Pikku G, and sold it to SAP in 2021. By then he was already involved in a project in Seinäjoki to build an electric motorcycle with its motor hidden inside the rim of the rear wheel. That became Verge Motorcycles. In 2024 he spun its motor business off as Donut Lab — and made some of the boldest claims in the battery industry.
- 2010
Early ventures
Co-founds Venture Bonsai, an early Helsinki-based online equity crowdfunding platform, at a time when equity crowdfunding was still unfamiliar in Europe.
- 2010
AppGyver
Starts AppGyver with Henri Vähäkainu, better known as the Finnish rapper Pikku G. The company builds tools that let people assemble mobile and web apps visually, without writing code.
- 2018
A motorcycle in Seinäjoki
RMK Vehicle Corporation is founded in Seinäjoki to rethink the electric motorcycle from scratch, with the drive motor built into the rim of the rear wheel so the battery can sit low in the frame.
- 2019
From RMK E2 to Verge TS
The E2 concept appears at the MP19 motorcycle show in Helsinki in January. In November, at EICMA in Milan, the company relaunches as Verge Motorcycles and the bike becomes the TS, with a hubless rear wheel and around 1,000 Nm of claimed torque.
- 2021
SAP buys AppGyver
In February SAP announces it has acquired AppGyver, a Helsinki no-code pioneer, for an undisclosed price. Its technology becomes part of SAP's Business Technology Platform and later SAP Build Apps.
- 2023
Starmatter
As Verge's chief technology officer, he launches Starmatter, a software platform bringing over-the-air updates and an Unreal Engine interface to the motorcycles. A camera-and-radar version, Starmatter Vision, follows at CES in January 2024.
- 2024
Donut Lab
In August Verge's motor technology is spun off into Donut Lab, with Lehtimäki as founder and chief executive, to sell in-wheel motors and integrated drive components to other manufacturers.
- 2025
Funding and a board heavyweight
Donut Lab raises a €25 million seed round in July. Risto Siilasmaa, founder of F-Secure and former chairman of Nokia, joins its board.
- 2026
The battery claim
At CES in January Donut Lab announces a solid-state 'Donut Battery', claiming 400 Wh/kg and 100,000 charge cycles. Battery researchers and industry executives dispute the claims, and partial tests by Finland's VTT research centre leave key figures unconfirmed.
- 2026
Under scrutiny
In August Donut Lab buys the nanotechnology company Nordic Nano Group. The company also faces a criminal complaint from a former Nordic Nano executive alleging the battery's advertised specifications were not achieved; Lehtimäki rejects the accusations as unfounded.
Major achievements
Marko Lehtimäki: major achievements.
- 01
An early no-code platform
AppGyver offered visual app-building years before 'no-code' became an industry category. Its sale to SAP turned it into part of one of the world's largest enterprise software suites.
- 02
The hubless superbike
Verge's TS put the motor in the rim of the rear wheel, removing the chain, gearbox and conventional hub. It moved from a 2019 concept to a production motorcycle built in Seinäjoki.
- 03
Software-defined motorcycles
Starmatter brought over-the-air updates and, in its Vision version, cameras and radar to an electric motorcycle — ideas more familiar from cars and phones.
- 04
A motor platform for other makers
Donut Lab sells the in-wheel motor idea beyond motorcycles, with a family of motors that the company says scales from drones to cars, including a 40 kg unit rated at 630 kW.
Turning points
Marko Lehtimäki: defining moments.
- School years
Restlessness as a tool
He has spoken in interviews about struggling to focus in class. He came to see the same restlessness as the source of his urge to try new things and to question rules that others take as fixed.
- 2010
Teaming up with Pikku G
Partnering with a rapper-turned-technologist on AppGyver set up the defining bet of his software career: that the gap between having an app idea and having the skills to build it could be closed with visual tools.
- 2019–2021
From code to hardware
As Verge's hubless bike reached the public, AppGyver's sale to SAP freed him to move fully into hardware. He became Verge's technology chief, bringing a software mindset to motors and motorcycles.
- 2024–2026
Big claims, hard questions
Spinning off Donut Lab let him pitch the technology to the wider vehicle industry. The solid-state battery announcement at CES 2026 brought worldwide attention — and sustained scepticism from scientists, competitors and Finnish media that remains unresolved.
What you’ll take away
Lessons from Marko Lehtimäki’s life.
- 01
Start from the function, not the look
Verge's empty wheel is striking, but Lehtimäki has said the goal was to place the battery low for better handling. The design followed from an engineering problem.
- 02
Integration is the product
His bet at Donut Lab is that vehicle makers lose most of their time making parts from different suppliers work together, so motors, batteries and software should be designed as one system.
- 03
Extraordinary claims need open evidence
The battery controversy shows how quickly attention turns to scrutiny. For deep-technology start-ups, independent, complete test data matters as much as the announcement.
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Marko Lehtimäki.
Who is Marko Lehtimäki?
A Finnish technology entrepreneur. He co-founded the no-code software company AppGyver, was chief technology officer of Verge Motorcycles, and founded and runs Donut Lab, an electric motor and battery company spun off from Verge in 2024.
What is Marko Lehtimäki's company Donut Lab?
A Finnish-founded electric drivetrain company, headquartered in Estonia. Spun off from Verge Motorcycles in August 2024, it develops in-wheel motors and integrated vehicle components, and in 2026 announced a solid-state battery whose claimed performance has been widely disputed.
Which companies has Marko Lehtimäki founded?
AppGyver and Donut Lab, along with earlier ventures such as the crowdfunding platform Venture Bonsai. He was also part of the team behind Verge Motorcycles, where he served as chief technology officer; AppGyver was acquired by SAP in February 2021.
What did Marko Lehtimäki do before Verge?
He built software companies. Most notably he co-founded AppGyver with Henri Vähäkainu (the rapper Pikku G), a visual platform for building apps without code that SAP bought in 2021.
Is Donut Lab's solid-state battery real?
It is unproven. Donut Lab says it has a working solid-state battery and has published tests by Finland's VTT research centre, but those tests did not confirm the headline energy density and cycle-life claims at first, and many battery experts say the published results look like a lithium-ion cell.
How does Verge's hubless motorcycle work?
The motor is built into the rim of the rear wheel. That removes the hub, chain and gearbox, drives the wheel directly, and frees space to mount the battery low in the frame for better handling.
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16 min · one sitting