Electric Ferry Rides on Hydrofoils

Most ferries of about 30 feet start to bounce and slap against the water as they pick up speed. The VS-9, built by the startup Vessev, does the opposite: as it accelerates, two wing-like structures beneath the hull begin to lift the boat, and the ride settles into something closer to a sports car than a boat. During a brief trip from the Brooklyn Marina toward Governors Island on the East River in New York, the transition from sailing to almost-flying was subtle enough that the reporter on board had to ask when it would happen. It already had.

What Actually Happens Beneath the Hull

On the surface, the VS-9 looks like plenty of other catamarans. Underneath, it carries two foils that slice through the water and generate lift. Computer-controlled underwater flaps keep the ride smooth and stable, adjusting continuously as the boat moves.

In the VS-9, most of the lifting work is done by the front foil, with about 20% handled by the rear. The rear foil also holds the electric motor, which Vessev builds in-house rather than sourcing from a supplier.

That decision was deliberate. Laakmann said that it’s important to keep costs in line, and that eventually you’ll have to bring production in house, so why not do it earlier in development? The only component Vessev does not build is the battery. “Those have been commoditized,” Laakmann said.

Why Hydrofoils Matter for Electric Boats

Lifting the hull clear of the water reduces drag, which lets a hydrofoil operate more efficiently than a conventional boat. For an electric vessel, where every kilowatt-hour counts, that efficiency is central to how far the boat can go on a charge.

Shipbuilders have been experimenting with hydrofoils for well over a century. The design offers lower drag and a smoother ride, and the VS-9’s transition from sailing to almost-flying showed how smooth the experience can be.

The boat can also charge using a typical EV charger, according to the source material, which keeps its power needs within existing infrastructure rather than requiring a specialized charging setup.

The Limits of Foiling

Hydrofoils are not a universal solution. The design works best in waters the boat can clear while sailing on its foils. For the VS-9, that clearance is about two and a half feet, or 0.75 meters. If waves rise above that level, they start hitting the hull, which ruins the smooth ride and saps some efficiency.

That constraint makes hydrofoils a poor fit for the open ocean but a reasonable one for lakes, rivers, and bays, where conditions are more predictable and the boat can stay on its foils.

The VS-9 can raise its foils to access docks in shallower waters, which addresses one of the practical hurdles of operating a foiling vessel in built-up waterways.

Range, Capacity, and Charging

Vessev says the VS-9 can carry a full passenger load up to 40 nautical miles, which is 46 miles or 74 kilometers. That range, combined with electric propulsion and the efficiency gains from foiling, is what the company is betting will make smaller vessels cheaper to operate.

• $19 million — the size of Vessev’s Series A round, raised in August
• 40 nautical miles — range with a full passenger load (46 miles or 74 kilometers)
• 20% — share of lift handled by the rear foil
• 2.5 feet (0.75 meters) — the wave height the VS-9 can clear while foiling

Who Vessev Is Targeting First

Vessev is aiming at transit operations to start. Laakmann thinks the combination of electric propulsion and hydrofoils can bring down the cost of operating smaller vessels and make them comfortable enough that they could augment urban mass transit systems.

Somewhere like New York City could use them to zip people to Brooklyn or Queens without needing to build much new infrastructure, according to the source material. That framing positions the VS-9 less as a recreational craft and more as a piece of urban transport that slots into existing waterways.

Hotels and tour operators are also an early target market. Public demonstrations like the one in New York have attracted wealthy individuals looking for another toy, Laakmann said.

From One Boat to a Platform

For now, the VS-9 that made the Brooklyn run is one of a kind. Laakmann said Vessev plans to build more.

Further out, the company might shift to producing electric hydrofoil kits, allowing other boatbuilders to design their own vessels around the technology, Laakmann said. That approach would turn Vessev from a single boatbuilder into a supplier of the foiling and electric propulsion system itself.

“When will we start flying?”

— Eric Laakmann, co-founder and CEO of Vessev, asked by the reporter aboard the VS-9; his answer was, “We already are.”

What the Ride Reveals About the Design

The reporter on board had been on large ferries, small sailboats, and plenty of other boats in between, but never a hydrofoil. The expectation was that the moment of transition would feel momentous. It did not feel like flying, but it was a bit like riding in a sports car.

That understatement matters for how the technology is likely to be received. A ride that is smooth and unremarkable is easier to sell to transit operators and passengers than one that is dramatic, and the VS-9’s foiling transition happens without the bounce and slap that conventional boats of its size produce at speed.

The wake while foiling is minimal, which is a visible sign of how much of the hull is out of the water. Less hull in the water means less drag, and less drag is what makes the electric range figures possible.

Why It Matters

The VS-9’s significance is less about any single boat than about what it suggests for short-haul urban transport. If electric hydrofoils can operate cheaply enough and comfortably enough, they could offer cities a way to move people across water using infrastructure that already exists, rather than building new bridges, tunnels, or rail lines.

The trade-offs are real and documented in the source: hydrofoils are not suited to the open ocean, and waves above roughly 2.5 feet degrade both the ride and the efficiency. That limits where the technology can be deployed, but it also defines a niche — lakes, rivers, and bays — where the conditions match the design.

For Vessev, the path from a single VS-9 to a fleet, and potentially to selling hydrofoil kits to other boatbuilders, is what would determine whether this stays a curiosity or becomes a platform. For transit agencies and operators watching the space, the question is whether the cost of running a smaller electric vessel can fall enough to make waterborne transit a practical complement to buses and trains. That remains an open question, but the engineering behind the VS-9 is at least aimed squarely at it.