Alongside the major manufacturers, numerous startup companies presented intriguing designs. The organizers' decision to subdivide booths more than before, making them more accessible for exhibitors, proved successful.

Hopium, a French brand founded in 2019 by Olivier Lombard, a racing driver in the European Le Mans Series, is already listed on the Paris Stock Exchange. Their "Machina" is a fuel cell vehicle that can be refueled in just three minutes for a range of 1000 km. Priced at 120,000 euros (approximately 17.3 million yen), they began taking reservations at the Paris exhibition, with production scheduled to start in 2025.

NamX (NAMX), a multinational company with operations in Africa, takes a different approach to fuel cell vehicles. The design is by Thomas de Lussac, a freelance product designer based in Paris. Its most distinctive feature is the ability to load six 24-kilogram hydrogen fuel cartridges in addition to a fixed fuel tank. The system has obtained patents that ensure it can pass crash tests.

While the vehicle itself is an evolution of the concept model unveiled in Italy in May 2022, de Lussac presented a new challenge to the author: a device named "Capturer."

"This is a container that can hold a large number of hydrogen fuel cartridges," de Lussac explained its flexibility. "It can be loaded onto a large truck and transported to locations where cartridge exchange is needed." Its appearance is sufficiently stylish. In my opinion, excellent design has the effect of alleviating people's apprehension towards new energy sources.