aCentauri Solar Racing

What aCentauri Solar Racing does

aCentauri Solar Racing is a Swiss non-profit student association (gemeinnütziger Verein) affiliated with ETH Zürich that designs, builds, and races solar-powered vehicles in international competitions. Its primary product is a new-generation solar race car roughly every two years, built around high-efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells (>25% efficiency in the 2025 Silvretta) and lightweight battery systems (3 kWh LFP, 210 kg vehicle mass, top speed 125 km/h), engineered to complete the 3,000 km Bridgestone World Solar Challenge across the Australian Outback. The team's secondary, technically significant product is AISCO (Artificial Intelligence for Solar Car Optimisation), launched in 2026 as an AI-driven design pipeline comprising an Aeroshell Optimizer built on Geometry Informed Neural Networks and Wavelet Implicit Neural Representations, a CFD-AI Deep Learning surrogate model for near-instantaneous aerodynamic drag prediction, a Solar Estimator, an Assembler module that maps World Solar Challenge regulations into buildable geometry, a GUI for human-in-the-loop control, and an internal aCeBot LLM trained on the team's documentation history to manage knowledge transfer across annual student turnover.

The organization is funded entirely through voluntary corporate sponsorships (tiered from Gold through Premier/Main partners including Meyer Burger, Sika, BCG Platinumion, Swiss Re Foundation, RUAG, Gebrüder Weiss, Axpo, Mecaplex, Esoro, Fabrimex Systems, and others), ETH Zürich departmental support (D-MAVT Sustainability Fund for AISCO), and grants from foundations such as Hasler. It sells no commercial products or services; all contributions are used solely to fund the racing and AISCO projects. The customer base is in effect the team itself — ETH Zürich and partner university engineering students (ETH, FHNW, ZHAW) seeking hands-on experience — and the team's revenue mechanics depend on biennial sponsorship renewal cycles aligned with each new vehicle generation. AISCO's AI toolchain is academically supervised by Prof. Mark Fuge's IDEAL Lab at ETH Zürich, providing research-grade validation.

Name

aCentauri Solar Racing

Legal name

aCentauri Solar Racing

Website

https://acentauri.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

aCentauri Solar Racing is a Swiss non-profit ETH Zürich student association that designs and races solar-powered cars in the 3,000 km Bridgestone World Solar Challenge and the iLumen European Solar Challenge, funded through corporate sponsorships while developing the AISCO AI-driven design optimization platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Solar Racing Vehicles

akta.pro primary industry

Solar Design, Engineering & Performance Software (PV Modeling, Digital Twins, Monitoring) (EUAMABAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Concentrated Solar & Solar Fuels R&D (CSP Innovations, Thermochemical, Solar-to-Hydrogen) (EUAMAOAE)

Keywords

• Solar racing vehicles
• Student engineering project
• AI design optimization
• Sustainable mobility
• Solar car racing

Headquarters

HQ city

Zurich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Sponsorship and Donations: Financial and in-kind contributions from corporate sponsors including expertise, tools, components, and financial assistance. Non-profit association funded solely for project purposes.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

aCentauri Solar Racing is a Swiss student-led non-profit association based at ETH Zürich that designs, builds, and races solar-powered vehicles in international competitions such as the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (3,000 km across Australia) and the iLumen European Solar Challenge. The team develops proprietary AI-driven design optimization tools (AISCO) including aeroshell geometry optimizers, CFD-AI surrogate models, and a solar estimator to accelerate solar car engineering. All activities are funded through corporate sponsorships, university contributions, and private donations for educational and competition purposes.

Product overview

aCentauri Solar Racing is a student project team at ETH Zürich that designs and builds solar race cars for international competitions. The product portfolio consists of solar vehicles (Aletsch 2023, Silvretta 2025) and a dedicated AI design optimization system called AISCO (Artificial Intelligence for Solar Car Optimisation). The solar cars are purpose-built for endurance races like the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (3,000 km through Australian outback) and iLumen European Solar Challenge, while AISCO provides AI-driven exploration of aeroshell designs, aerodynamic simulation, and solar performance estimation to accelerate the vehicle design process.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AISCO: Artificial Intelligence for Solar Car Optimisation - an AI-driven project that revolutionizes the design process of solar race cars by exploring diverse aeroshell designs and predicting aerodynamic drag using CFD-AI.

Products and services

• Aletsch First-generation solar race car designed for the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. Dimensions 5m x 1.3m x 1.1m, weight 190kg, equipped with 4m² monocrystalline silicon solar cells with >24% efficiency, a 5.5 kWh NMC battery, and a top speed of 120 km/h. Built by ETH Zürich engineering students.
• Silvretta Next-generation solar race car built for BWSC 2025 with improved aerodynamics and efficiency. Dimensions 5.8m x 1.4m x 0.9m, weight 210kg, equipped with 6m² monocrystalline silicon solar cells (>25% efficiency), a 3 kWh LFP battery, and a top speed of 125 km/h. Completed the 3,000 km Australian solar marathon in September 2025.
• AISCO (Artificial Intelligence for Solar Car Optimisation) AI-driven design optimization platform for solar race cars. Includes an Aeroshell Optimizer (geometry-informed neural networks), CFD AI surrogate models for aerodynamic drag prediction, a Solar Estimator, an Assembler module for engineering constraints, a graphical user interface, and the aCeBot internal knowledge LLM. The platform ranks aeroshell concepts by minimal race time and is developed under ETH Zürich IDEAL Lab supervision with Hasler Foundation support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Travel 3,000 km powered by solar energy at speeds up to 125 km/h
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

42 partnerships are on record, tiered main, premier, gold, partner association and core.

• Gebrüder WeissmainStrategic or Co-development PartnerMain sponsor providing logistics and transportation support for the team
• Meyer BurgermainStrategic or Co-development PartnerSolar cell technology partner
• SikamainStrategic or Co-development PartnerMain sponsor for 2024/2025 season
• Mecaplex (Glastronesch)premierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier partner for 2024/2025
• Fabrimex SystemspremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier partner for 2024/2025
• EsoropremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier partner for 2024/2025
• BCG PlatinumionpremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• Swiss Re FoundationpremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• RUAGpremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• EsoropremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• TribecraftpremierTechnology or IntegrationTechnology partner for BWSC 2023
• Brusa HypowerpremierTechnology or IntegrationPower electronics technology partner
• AxpopremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnergy partner for BWSC 2023
• CarbomillpremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• Solar Energy RacerspremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerSolar technology partner
• Fabrimex SystemspremierStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier sponsor for BWSC 2023
• iTechWorldgoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerGold sponsor for 2024/2025
• Applied IntuitiongoldTechnology or IntegrationSimulation and testing software provider
• AILgoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerGold sponsor for 2024/2025
• LüthigoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerGold sponsor for 2024/2025
• ListagoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerStorage and organization solutions sponsor
• SunPowergoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerSolar cell technology provider
• CSEMgoldTechnology or IntegrationResearch institute for solar technology
• KnowResgoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerKnowledge management solutions sponsor
• HiltigoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerConstruction tools and solutions
• El Tony MategoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeverage sponsor for 2024/2025
• SiemensgoldTechnology or IntegrationIndustrial automation and software provider
• Busch GroupgoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerVacuum and blower technology
• RuethemanngoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrecision components sponsor
• Teijin Carbon EuropegoldTechnology or IntegrationCarbon fiber materials provider
• HetznergoldTechnology or IntegrationCloud hosting services
• Relais ArpettegoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerGold sponsor for 2026/2027
• Phoenix ContactgoldTechnology or IntegrationElectronics and automation technology for 2026/2027
• HiltigoldStrategic or Co-development PartnerConstruction and mounting solutions
• Würth ElektronikgoldTechnology or IntegrationElectronic components provider
• ETH Zürichpartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost university providing facilities, resources, and academic supervision
• University of Adelaidepartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost university in Australia for BWSC competition
• ETH Zürichpartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner association for 2024/2025
• FHNWpartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university
• ZHAWpartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner university
• FHNWpartner associationStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner association for 2026/2027
• IDEAL Lab (ETH Zürich)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInstitute for Design, Engineering and Learning - academic supervision for AISCO project by Prof. Mark Fuge

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Siemens (Digital Industries / Simcenter): Industrial automation and engineering simulation software provider, also a Gold sponsor. Relevant as a strategic partner whose Simcenter/CFD tooling overlaps with the technical domain AISCO aims to disrupt, and as a benchmark for what scaled commercialization of design software looks like.
• Applied Intuition: Provider of simulation and validation software for autonomous vehicles and advanced automotive development. Listed as a Gold sponsor of aCentauri and relevant as an adjacent player in the AI-driven automotive design space where AISCO's surrogate models sit.

Direct peers

• University of Michigan Solar Car Team: Long-running US university solar car team and multi-time BWSC participant. Comparable as a student-led solar racing organization competing in the same international competitions with similar engineering and AI/optimization workflows.
• Twente Solar Team: Student team from the University of Twente that designs and races solar cars in BWSC and other challenges. Closely comparable as a university solar racing team with similar sponsorship-driven, non-profit operating model.
• MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team: MIT's student solar EV team competing in the American Solar Challenge and related events. Comparable as a top-tier university student solar car engineering program with strong industry sponsor support.
• Nuon Solar Team (TU Delft): Student solar car racing team from TU Delft, the most decorated competitor in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. Directly comparable as a top-tier university solar racing program competing in the same BWSC and European solar challenges.
• Top Dutch Solar Racing: Dutch student-led solar racing consortium fielding a team for the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. Comparable as a European student solar car project with similar race, sponsor, and engineering program structure.
• Cambridge University Eco Racing: Student-led solar and sustainable vehicle project at the University of Cambridge. Comparable as a UK-based university solar racing initiative with similar educational and engineering ambitions.
• Stanford Solar Car Project: Stanford University's student-led solar car team that designs and races vehicles in the BWSC and American Solar Challenge. Directly comparable in mission, structure, and competition profile.
• Sunswift Racing (UNSW Sydney): Australian university solar car team at UNSW Sydney, a perennial BWSC competitor. Directly comparable in mission, scale, and competition cadence.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@acentaurisolarracing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acentauri
• Instagraminstagram.com/acentauri_solarracing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about aCentauri Solar Racing