Among the chief attractions at this year's Paris Auto Show were hydrogen-powered vehicles developed by startups: the stylish and innovative Hopium Machina, a 500 hp (373 kW) car with a 621-mile (1,000-km) range reaching a maximum speed of 143 mph (230 km/h); and the NAMX SUV, the world's first car partially powered by removable tanks.

Considering that Hopium was founded by a former Le Mans 24 hours winner, it isn't a surprise that Machina is performance-focused. Olivier Lombard, who won in the LMP2 category in 2011 at Le Mans, also had a stint as a development driver of H24's hydrogen-powered prototype that is set to run in future Le Mans races. "As a racing driver, for many years, I developed a race car with hydrogen technology. That is why I went for a performance car that also had range and took between three to four minutes to refuel," Lombard, who is also the CEO of Hopium, told Ars Technica.