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You can see the future from the 112th floor of the Burj Khalifa. But you have to squint.
by Georgia Tolley
December 12, 2016
Here in the futuristic Middle Eastern city of Dubai, along with the deserts of Nevada, an unbelievably ambitious idea is fast becoming reality: A plan to suck commuters and people late for birthday parties through tubes at 700 miles an hour. A plan to slash journey times from hours to minutes. A plan to reinvent transportation to eliminate the barriers of time and distance — using apps, autonomous vehicles, and a vacuum.
Entrepreneur Elon Musk introduced the idea of Hyperloop in 2013, with his white paper “Hyperloop Alpha.” But busy with SpaceX, Tesla, and solar panels, Musk handed over the idea to the world, with a challenge to the globe’s engineers to effectively create this generation’s Concorde. It was a charge the team at Los Angeles-based Hyperloop One were only too happy to adopt, and they haven’t hung around. In less than two years, the start-up has raised more than $160 million, assembled a team of more than 200 engineers, and developed a 10,000-square meter factory in Las Vegas. Industry leaders, investors, and governments are sniffing success.
Tuesday morning, during a slick product launch on the 112th floor of the iconic Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper, Hyperloop One CEO Rob Lloyd signed an agreement with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority to explore if the Hyperloop can be built in the United Arab Emirates. Dubai’s government will fund a detailed feasibility study involving McKinsey & Co. and the architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), to take the next giant leap in commercial travel. The aim: To create a Hyperloop link between Dubai and the capital city Abu Dhabi, by 2020. It would cut travel time from 2 hours to a mere 12 minutes.
Dubai’s rapidly changing landscape includes an expanded Dubai Canal.
Skeptics might argue only four years is an unrealistic target. But Hyperloop One started in co-founder Josh Giegel’s garage in 2014, and now the team is planning practical tests in the Nevada desert early 2017. Two years ago, the government of Dubai announced a new 3.2-kilometer canal (seen below) to cut through the city. Residents scoffed at the declaration it would take only two years to excavate, and bridges over the city’s three main arteries needed to be built. It officially opens Wednesday. Suddenly 2020 for Hyperloop One starts to sound realistic.
How Hyperloop One Thinks It Will Work
But the team in Dubai aren’t just planning to speed things up. They want to change the very face of travel. With the input of Danish architects from BIG, they’ve created an integrated system involving self-driving vehicles: These on-demand, autonomous, pod-like vehicles will pick you up from your door (Uber-style) and drive you to “portals.” They’re not exactly stations, because you won’t ever be stationary — the portals are even designed without waiting rooms. Instead, on arrival, your pod will be instantly sucked into the Hyperloop, and 12 minutes later you’ll arrive in Abu Dhabi. Your pod will then drive you to your destination.
“It’s an on demand, weather-proof, direct-to-destination, ultra-safe, ultra-fast, ultra-reliable energy-elegant system for moving people and goods,” Giegel told Inverse on Tuesday.
Hyperloop One released this concept video that shows an example trip:
And a Dubai to Abu Dhabi Hyperloop journey is only the beginning. Giegel says he has his mind set on a super-fast system linking locations in the Gulf Region. Qatar, which is hosting the 2022 World Cup, is next on the list (Doha to Dubai in 23 minutes), followed by Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia (48 minutes). With cities around the globe considering hyperloop, they may well be on the cusp of something extraordinary.
“It’s the full-world domination strategy,” Giegel told us with a smile.
Helsinki and Stockholm are considering a Hyperloop (310 miles in 30 minutes), and Hyperloop One’s Vice President, Alan James, says the company is looking to cut the journey between Melbourne and Sydney to 55 minutes. Even the Russian government is considering constructing a Hyperloop in Moscow.
They need to test their technology, they need investors, and they need more governments to get involved. And then, “full-world domination.”
— This article originally appeared at Inverse.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
The future of technology is the future of America. Rod Martin sees that future clearly, and also sees how to shape it for the betterment of all. He is firmly rooted in the traditions of faith and patriotism that have made America great. That’s why he has made, and will make, so many outstanding contributions in so many areas.
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