A trip to Europe often means adjusting to a lot of walking, but don’t let it fool you: cars are still the default for urban mobility. However, entrepreneurs are seeking to challenge this status quo — and the first step is understanding why it is so ingrained.

For Belgian startup Any, the only way to boost the use of two-wheelers is to make sure they’re “designed for real life.” And for Any, that means they should be able to hold a lot of stuff, without sacrificing speed, range, or versatility.

The startup’s “designed for real life” belief inspired its first product, a modular electric motorcycle called the LUV1 that has the capacity of a cargo bike, but can reach a top speed of 100 km/h or 62 mph. Any’s attempt to fill in the “missing link” left “It came from asking a simple question: what does a real week actually need?

For related coverage, explore our detailed analysis on Technology and Digital Systems.

Groceries Weekend Bags Suitcases… Updates

Groceries, weekend bags, suitcases… the stuff you don’t want to leave behind just because you’re on two wheels, not four,” the startup wrote on LinkedIn. There’s even more that the LUV1 can carry.

Customers can either pick an open frame or one with various types of panels — depending on whether they want to travel with a pet or carry work equipment or camping gear.

The modularity extends to other parts as well, including an optional windshield, racks, rain poncho, and several other variations that could make it appealing to commuters and families, or outdoorsy riders. This modular design is the brainchild of former Pininfarina design director Lowie Vermeersch, whose reputation helped the LUV1 immediately make headlines when its eye-catching prototype was unveiled in May during Milan Design Week.

Vermeersch’s collaboration with Any isn’t just a one-off; the Granstudio founder is in charge of creative direction at the startup and is also one of its investors. Together, they are hoping to pioneer a new hybrid category they call “life utility vehicles” — hence the LUV1’s name.

Starting at €7,000 (about $8,150), the LUV1 will be less expensive than cars and closer to the cost of higher-end electric cargo bikes.

Compared More Powerful Motorcycles Updates

Compared to more powerful motorcycles, it will also have another differentiator — it should only require an A1 license, which is easy to obtain in most places. The exact price tag will depend on the custom options each customer can pick through the configurator that Any launched alongside its preorder campaign.

Boosted These reservations require a €49 fee ($57) that is credited toward the purchase price and, per Any’s terms, is fully refundable.

Read More: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and 100 other companies call for action to defend

Like de Winter’s former startup, Dutch e-cargo bike-sharing service Cargaroo, Any has also raised venture capital. The startup raised €1.5 million in November, followed 25 million top-up in May, for a total of €2.75 million ($3.2 million).

According to the startup, which enlisted former VC Pieter Van de Velde as its CEO one year ago, the round’s backers and its advisor roster include high-profile individuals from the automotive sector.

Adding more expertise on that side, Any also hired a head of engineering, Alessandro Mangano, whose former employers include Aprilia, Ferrari, and Piaggio Group. With two swappable batteries that give it a range of up to 87 miles per charge, the LUV1 should be able to hold its own against electric models launched in growing numbers But it will take more than that to stand out in a two-wheeler market that the European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers expects will be mostly electric Any is betting that all of that extra cargo space will be its main differentiator.

LUV1 is meant to appeal to a customer base that goes beyond motorcycle riders, de Winter informed TechCrunch. He shared the startup has been approached Before spreading itself further, however, the startup needs to ramp up production of the LUV1 ahead of its first deliveries to customers.

This will require more funding, and Any is now seeking to raise some €10 million ($11.65 million) or more in a Series A funding round that it hopes to close Pictured from left to right: Erik de Winter (CCO), Pieter Van de Velde (CEO), Alessandro Mangano (Head of Engineering).

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence. Anna Heim is a writer and editorial consultant.

You can contact or verify outreach from Anna com. As a freelance reporter at TechCrunch since 2021, she has covered a large range of startup-related topics including AI, fintech & insurtech, SaaS & pricing, and global venture capital trends. As of May 2025, her reporting for TechCrunch focuses on Europe’s most interesting startup stories.

Anna has moderated panels and conducted onstage interviews at industry events of all sizes, including major tech conferences such as TechCrunch Disrupt, 4YFN, South Summit, TNW Conference, VivaTech, and many more. A former LATAM & Media Editor at The Next Web, startup founder and Sciences Po Paris alum, she’s fluent in multiple languages, including French, English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese.

Don’t miss out. The startup community will gather to answer a pivotal question: How do you build sustainably in the AI era?

Fitbit founders launch Luffu Link, an LTE health and safety band Hugging Face reportedly in talks to be acquired for $13B Flock CEO calls for ‘compromise’ as surveillance company faces growing backlash Two years after launch, Walmart’s Flipkart is closing in on India’s quick-commerce leaders Inherent, founded Michael Polansky is training an AI model on skin that’s still alive