Vessev (formerly Seachange, and before that FreightFish, which built autonomous cargo vessels) designs and builds electric hydrofoiling passenger vessels along with the flight-control and telemetry systems that operate them. Its VS-9 entered commercial service with Fullers360 on Auckland's Hauraki Gulf in January 2025, and the company has since brought propulsion in-house with VS-Drive, an electric motor developed with co-funding from New Zealand's Low Emission Transport Fund. Operators in New Zealand, Australia, the United States and Europe have placed orders, including Taupō Hydrofoil Tours, Fly Derwent in Hobart, which has doubled its order, Finn Lough as its first European customer, and FlyTahoe at Lake Tahoe as its first US customer. A larger VS-18 is in development, and the company opened a US office in Rhode Island in 2025 ahead of entering the American market the following year. Founded by Max Olson and led by chief executive Eric Laakmann, Vessev employs 58 people at its Auckland, New Zealand headquarters. Financially, Vessev raised US$19 million (NZ$32.6 million) in Series A and follow-on financing in August 2026, led by Blackbird Ventures; the articles do not state a cumulative total raised across its earlier rounds.

Total raised

$19M

Funding rounds

3

Latest round

Series A

Latest activity

Aug 2026