If the hyperloop won't come to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), then multimillionaire Peter Diamandis will bring it to the UAE — at least that's what the founder of XPrize announced on Monday, Oct. 12 in Dubai.
Diamandis, who serves on the board of Hyperloop Technologies, presented the company's vision of its revolutionary, break-neck transportation system at 6th du CEO Forum at the Dubai World Trade Centre, assuring audience members with the promise of a transit time from Abu Dhabi to Dubai in 15 minutes or less. Fittingly, the futurist also avowed to deliver the hyperloop in record time — by as early as 2020.
"Hyperloop is about reinventing transportation," stated Diamandis. "This is about the future. This is like how mobile telephone reinvented the world many times over."
For those unfamiliar with the high-octane rail, the hyperloop was first conceptualized by business mogul and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in 2013, who proposed linking Los Angeles and San Francisco with inaugural iteration of the system (which, among other things, might have been the inspiration for the Vince Vaughn-centric light-rail subplot in the second season of HBO's True Detective). To put it simply, the transit line is essentially a monorail on steroids — or, as Musk posted on SpaceX's website, a mode of transportation for a commute under "several hundred miles," an aerodynamic pod that will move through a series of pneumatic tubes to its destination (to put Musk's assertions into a clearer context, the tech entrepreneur is confident that the supersonic jet will become the first travel option of choice sooner rather than later, even if he won't develop it himself).
If Musk and Diamandis' somewhat bombastic overtures seem similar, you're on the right track: Musk is on the XPrize board of trustees, putting them more or less in cahoots.
Really, the most pressing question: how fast would the hyperloop really go? For perspective: the distance between Abu Dhabi and Dubai is roughly 90 miles; the speed of the rail would compound a two-hour car ride into 15 minutes.
As for whether Diamandis' declarations will come to fruition? We'll have to wait and see — for about five years, at least.
Learn more about Hyperloop Technologies in the video below.
Via: Motherboard
