When HardTech Took Center Stage at SEMA 2025

The 2025 SEMA Show made one thing very clear: hardware innovation is accelerating, and the companies who treat physical product development with the same speed, agility, and system integration found in software are the ones shaping the future.

For Motivo, SEMA is more than a showcase of builds. It’s a window into the state of the innovation ecosystem. And this year, SEMA wasn’t just about style or aftermarket culture, it was a clear blueprint of where hardware is heading across mobility, electrification, robotics, manufacturing, and off-road systems.

Below is our full recap, our analysis of the biggest trends from the show, and the key insights from the Motivo-hosted panel on the FutureTech Stage.

Major Trends That Defined SEMA 2025

1. Alternative Fuels Are No Longer Fringe, They’re Strategic

Hydrogen and alternative energy platforms were front and center across the show. The FutureTech Studio programming specifically highlighted emerging fuel technologies as a core theme, including hydrogen, advanced ICE modernization, and hybrid systems.

One standout example: the Toyota Tacoma H2-Overlander Concept, a hydrogen fuel-cell off-road truck producing 547 hp with an integrated battery pack and a 15-kW onboard generator for campsite loads.

What this means:

Hardware teams must now design systems with multiple energy architectures in mind. Battery-only is no longer the default. Flexibility is the new requirement.

2. Additive Manufacturing Went From Prototype to Production

This year’s SEMA builds didn’t just use 3D printing for brackets or covers, they showcased full-scale structural components engineered with additives at their core.

A prominent example: Toyota’s bZ Time Attack Concept, which used large-format 3D-printed aero and structural components produced through Toyota’s Add Lab.

Industry panels also highlighted how companies like HP Additive are now supplying production-grade printed parts to OEMs and performance developers.

What this means:

Additive manufacturing is now a viable option for production-relevant volumes. It won’t replace casting or stamping, but it will increasingly define early production, customization, and low-volume platforms.

3. Overlanding Is Entering Its “Systems Integration” Era

Off-road used to be about suspension kits and wheels. Now it’s about energy systems, connectivity, and digital control hardware.

Key examples from SEMA:

• Hyundai Ioniq 9 Off-Road Concept, built with BigTime, showing EV overlanding with integrated power systems and off-road-ready electronics

• Exhibitors highlighted modular battery banks, smart controllers, high-output alternators for hybrid rigs, and satellite-connected comms.

What this means:

Whether you're designing a robot, a vehicle platform, or off-grid hardware, the future conversation is about energy autonomy & digital intelligence, not just mechanical capability.

4. OEMs Are Leaning Hard Into Factory-Backed Customization

SEMA 2025 signaled just how committed OEMs are to aftermarket ecosystems.

A few notables:

• Mopar’s Ram 1500 “Dude” concept and Dodge’s Charger Sixpack concept preview OEM-approved modular customization.

• Nissan showed four builds including a 1,000-hp Patrol and desert support rigs, signaling OEM confidence in engineered aftermarket ecosystems.

  
  

What this means:

Hardware innovators should design with OEM integration in mind. Ecosystems are replacing standalone products.

5. Electronics, Control Systems, and ADAS Repair Are Now “Performance Parts”

Beyond engines and suspension, SEMA highlighted electronics and system controls as category-defining components.

New product winners included:

• Advanced VCUs (vehicle control units)

• ADAS-calibration and repair innovations

• Platform-level sensor systems integrated with drivetrain and chassis tuning

  
  

And importantly, a huge congratulations to Premium Guard Inc., who was recognized among this year’s standout innovators. Their work reflects exactly the shift we’re seeing: hardware is becoming smarter, more modular, and increasingly connected. Their recognition is well deserved and a strong signal that intelligent systems are becoming a foundational part of modern performance and vehicle innovation.

What this means:

The line between hardware and software has fully blurred. Modern performance is as much about data flow, sensors, and control logic as mechanical design.

Motivo’s FutureTech Panel: “Making Hard Tech Less Hard”

Motivo hosted a panel at the FutureTech Studio featuring:

• Michael Konig, Chief Business Officer, Motivo

• Damon Pipenberg, CTO, Motivo

• Ian Lehn, Founder of BOOSTane & Forged Authority

• Kevin A. Damoa, Founder & CEO, GLID

  
  

The conversation focused on building hardware in a fast-moving world shaped by new materials, new energy systems, and new global pressures. Here are the three core themes that resonated most:

1. Rapid Prototyping Isn’t Optional, It’s the Strategy

Whether through 3D printing, benchtop testing, or modular rigs, the consensus was clear:

“Break it early. Break it often. Learn faster than everyone else.”

Teams that avoid early testing fall behind. Teams that embrace failure win.

2. Manufacturing Reality Must Inform Engineering Ambition

The panel drilled into one of the most common mistakes: designing something amazing that is impossible (or unaffordable) to build.

Questions every hardware leader must ask early:

• Can we manufacture this at scale?

• Can we afford it?

• Does the supply chain support it?

• Can this design evolve with emerging tech?

  
  

This isn’t pessimism. It’s the foundation of scalable innovation.

3. Culture Is the Hidden Engine of Hardware

Hardware timelines are long. They demand resilience and mission-driven thinking.

The leaders emphasized:

• Normalizing failure

• Encouraging fast iteration

• Protecting team morale

• Reinforcing mission over ego

  
  

Because building physical products is hard, and culture is what sustains the team through it.