Wunderkind Nils Samrud on Project Europe, youth, and his ambitious growth plans: 'We will be the largest hydrogen supplier by 2030'

You started tinkering with hydrogen when you were just twelve. Why?

I was curious after a school discussion about climate change. At first, I had ideas about increasing the range of electric cars, which I presented to researchers at Chalmers. They completely rejected me. After that, I became more interested in hydrogen – and I’ve been into it ever since.

You started Lavoit in 2024 – were you still in secondary school then?

Yes. My grandfather was the one who formally started it, and I took over as soon as I turned 18. Today, we’re a team of five.

What does the world gain from more green hydrogen?

We talk a lot about solar, wind, and batteries, which is great. But many industries are hard to decarbonise with electricity alone – especially those that already use hydrogen but currently produce it from fossil fuels. Simply replacing grey hydrogen with green hydrogen would make a massive dent in emissions.

Nickel and rare metals are still a big challenge in electrolysers though, right?

Yes, exactly. A lot of components in electrolysers are produced in ways that generate high emissions. That’s an area where new solutions are needed. But it doesn’t take away from the benefits of fossil-free hydrogen.

Your startup has just secured £1.3m from Project Europe. What are you working on now?

We’re running a test facility in Västerås and one at KTH, where we’re producing green hydrogen with our electrolysers.

We’ve also developed software to help existing hydrogen producers cut their energy consumption. The plan is to become the world’s largest producer of green hydrogen by 2030.

What’s the biggest misconception about you and your company?

That we lack knowledge because we’re young. People like to explain how the industry works to me, but they underestimate how long I’ve been doing this. That can be frustrating.

If you could pick a superpower, what would it be?

It would be cool to run incredibly fast. Then you could travel around the world efficiently.

And finally, it’s Friday coffee time. What’s your order?

Cardamom buns and coffee.