The dozen-strong team decided to build this battery-buffered fuel cell hybrid to get their heads around this higher-density, lesser-used clean fuel source, and hopefully to inspire others to give it a shot in the name of advancing "small hydrogen" vehicle technology.

It's been under construction for about a year at this point, starting out with a 1999 Ducati Supersport donor bike which was apparently christened "Toothless." Personally I'd suggest something a little more intimidating than that, but either way, the combustion engine and all associated trimmings were yanked out, leaving little but a frame with steering, brakes and suspension. Not a roller, either; the 900SS mounts the rear swingarm off the engine casing.

Into this frame, an electric powertrain was fitted, with a small battery and direct chain drive to the rear wheel, as well as mount points for the swingarm. The hydrogen system was added as a range extender, continually drawing energy through a Doosan fuel cell fed by a gas cylinder mounted under the bike's tail.

To address one elephant in the room, yes, it's hideous – but looking sexy isn't part of the brief here.

"Our vehicle is fully designed for research," says project lead Aditya Mehrotra in MIT News, "so you can swap components in and out, and get real hardware data on how good your designs are."