How Dynam Labs Is Redefining EV Control with the VCU+

The VCU Designed to Solve Problems, Not Create Them

alk into Dynam Labs’ Los Angeles space and you will find a workshop in motion. One corner holds the fabrication tools: a welder, a CNC table, and the gear needed to turn designs into parts. In the middle sits the test bench with wiring harnesses stretched across tables, an oscilloscope, and laptops logging live data from motors under load. Another area houses the 3D scanner, used to capture precise measurements for custom components. A car lift and hand tools fill the rest of the floor, ready for the next installation or teardown. Every square foot is dedicated to building, testing, and refining the systems that define their work.

From the Garage to the Lab

Dynam Labs began with the idea that EV builders needed something better than what was on the market. Ares Mathevossian, raised in a family of automotive specialists, brought two decades of experience building race cars and fabricating parts. Konstantin Smola, an embedded systems engineer with an Engineering Emmy to his name, added deep expertise in software and hardware integration. Piotr Rogowski completed the core team with a background in control engineering and a decade of software development focused on intuitive user interfaces.

What started in a garage quickly outgrew its space. The team moved into their Los Angeles workshop, where every corner is now dedicated to the process of building and refining their Vehicle Control Unit (VCU). The environment reflects the company’s mindset: focus on solving problems, keep development close, and verify everything in-house before it ever reaches a customer.

The Problem They Saw

When the team at Dynam Labs looked at the options available to EV builders, they saw a gap that was holding the industry back. On one end were basic speed controllers that could spin a motor with little integration or safety. On the other were complete drivetrain kits that cost tens of thousands of dollars and forced the builder into a fixed package with almost no flexibility.

Neither approach matched the freedom tuners had long enjoyed in the gas world with standalone ECUs. Many available VCUs were repurposed from gas-car platforms, adapted to drive an electric motor but never intended to act as the center of an EV conversion. Software often felt dated as well, with interfaces that looked unchanged for years. Builders needed something approachable, adaptable, and current.

This was the starting point for Dynam Labs: a professional-grade controller designed for EVs from the ground up.

The Hardware Solution

From the outside, the Dynam Labs Vehicle Control Unit looks like a piece of motorsport equipment. Each enclosure is machined from billet aluminum and finished to handle the heat and vibration of a working car. The connectors are automotive-grade, chosen to lock securely and withstand years of service.

Every unit is serialized, logged, and bench-tested before leaving the shop. That process ensures consistency from one controller to the next and gives builders confidence that what they are installing has already proven itself under load.

The VCU carries the performance of a modern controller. It integrates multiple CAN channels, Ethernet, and sensor inputs, with internal logging capacity that makes it possible to track and refine a drivetrain. Builders can run multiple motors independently, validate them without locking hardware, and operate a Tesla Front Drive Unit as a standalone when packaging demands it.

In a market crowded with adapted or fragile hardware, this unit feels like an OEM-grade product built specifically for EV swaps.

Inside the Software

Good hardware only matters if the software can keep up. For Dynam Labs, that meant writing their own. The result is Bolt, a calibration and control platform that feels modern where many tools feel stuck in the past.

Open it, and the difference is immediate. Instead of dated menus with cryptic labels, Bolt uses a clean layout where dashboards show live data in real time. Settings are organized by function, with hover help and tooltips to guide adjustments. Builders can shape torque maps, reassign inputs and outputs, and dial in drivetrain behavior without fighting the interface.

For deeper control, Bolt includes a plugin system built around Lua scripting. That makes it possible to write custom logic, such as setting an A/C cutoff above highway speeds or designing a throttle curve without touching the core firmware. Updates are handled with a single click, and the system is built to recover gracefully if something goes wrong.

Bolt runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux and is available through the Microsoft Store. Calibration should feel like tuning an app, not decoding industrial software.

Every connector, feature, and test comes from the same motivation: build tools that work for real builders.

Proving Grounds: Real Cars, Real Feedback

Dynam Labs does not rely on theory alone. Its shop car, a Porsche 944 fitted with an all-wheel-drive 996 Turbo front end, serves as a rolling development mule. It lets the team validate new features in real conditions, including traction control, ABS integration, and torque vectoring.

Beyond its own shop, the VCU is proving itself in the hands of professional builders. Current LA, known for high-end electric conversions, has installed the system in a traditional 1932 Ford hot rod and a Ferrari Dino. These are high-profile projects with high expectations, and both rely on Dynam Labs for the brains of their drivetrains.

The feedback loop with shops like Current LA is central to the company’s process. Each installation teaches something about packaging, calibration, and support. The team responds with updates that roll out to all users.

Building an Ecosystem

For Dynam Labs, the VCU is only the beginning. The company is building an ecosystem that supports professional shops and individual builders. One path is direct collaboration with shops like Current LA and DCC in the UK. Another is a growing network of trained distributors who provide installation support, troubleshooting, and customer education.

This strategy keeps knowledge close to the hardware. The team is developing step-by-step resources, from video walkthroughs to hands-on training, so builders can integrate the VCU with confidence.

Future products are on the way. A compact BMS satellite is in development to tighten integration between battery systems and the VCU. The throughline remains the same: listen to builders, identify what is missing, and design solutions that move the industry forward.

Bolt turns complexity into control. It gives builders a system they can understand, experiment with, and trust.

Dynam Labs operates from a modest shop, yet the work is significant. Persistence, precision, and a focus on getting it right have produced tools that already feel like the next generation of EV technology.

Specs

Dynam Labs VCU+

Processor: 520 MHz real-time CPU
Logging: 128 GB onboard memory
Connectivity: 3× CAN, 2× SENT, Ethernet
I/O: Temperature, analog and digital inputs, high- and low-side outputs, configurable PWM/PGM
Drive Units: Tesla FDU, LDU, and SDU, plus Cascadia Motion CM/PM series
Highlights: Built-in Tesla drive unit flashing, 12×12 torque maps, GPS integration, OTA firmware updates, Lua plugin support
Enclosure: Billet aluminum with automotive-grade connectors
QC: Serialized, logged, and bench-tested before shipment