BMW and TYDE Reveal THE ICON, the World's First Battery-Powered Marine Craft

BMW wants to lead the charge when it comes to electrified mobility, and now turns its attention away from road-going cars and motorbikes to focus on one of the biggest poulters on earth — yachts. This is THE ICON, a marine craft made in collaboration with TYDE, and it’s quite the architectural spectacle.

THE ICON is the first battery-powered marine craft of its kind, using a pair of 100 kW electric motors that convert the 240 kWh of energy supplied by six batteries from the BMW i3 into nautical power, speed, and range. As such, THE ICON can travel roughly 100 km, and hits a top speed of 55 km/h.

One of its remarkable points is that the boat is almost silent and does not produce waves or vibrations, thus disturbing the sea. It evokes the epitome of luxury voyage experiences, and this is only enhanced by the Hans Zimmer-produced soundtrack that has been applied to the functionality and drive notes of the boat.

At 13.15 meters in length, there is plenty of space for a crew and the owner to indulge in THE ICON’s luxury. The ideals of origami have been used to create the angular, sculptural exterior, while LED lights decorate the hull come day or night. Angled glass doors meet 360° rotating seats, a 6K 32-inch touchscreen display, and artistically designed furniture that echoes the creativity of the exterior.

Take a look at BMW and TYDE’s THE ICON above, and see it in real life at the 76th Cannes Film Festival now.

In other news, a Japanese tuner has pimped the new Toyota Prius.