If you're searching for the future of transportation, look up. Transportation startup Skyryse just completed an end-to-end autonomous helicopter flight, where the pilot never had to touch the controls.
"This is a really large step toward realizing a transportation system in the sky that can one day move us away from the cars and the crumbling infrastructure that is throughout our cities," explained Mark Groden, the company's founder and CEO.
While the helicopter, called Luna, isn't to be overlooked, it isn't the main attraction as far as Skyryse is concerned. That distinction belongs to the Skyryse Flight Stack technology, which the company hopes will revolutionize short-distance air travel. The sector is flooded right now, with as many as 130 companies looking for a piece of the pie, including big names like Uber involved. Skyryse isn't looking to beat them, but assist them.
"What we're focused on is building the technology that will lead to this transportation system," said Groden.
Reliable, widely-used short-distance air travel has seemed like something of a pipe dream until now, but Groden is quick to point out the first automated flight actually took place decades ago, when the Lockheed-1011 safely crossed the Atlantic. The idea of automated air travel isn't a new one, and the CEO believes it will expedite the process of making it a reality.
"The pragmatic approach we're taking, following existing paths that the FAA is already very keen to work with us on, will allow us to realize this in single-digit years, and far sooner than I think a lot of people expect," he said.
Hertz, the car rental giant, has placed an order for 100,000 Tesla Model 3s and sent Tesla's value soaring, pushing it into the $1 trillion club during the trading day Monday. Dan Ives, managing director of equity research for Wedbush, told Cheddar's 'Closing Bell', "It shows [electric vehicles] going to the mainstream." The move gives Hertz a leg up by differentiating itself from competitors and shows Tesla's dominance in the marketplace, He noted. And as for that trillion-dollar valuation? Ives said he could see it rising even higher down the road.
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Voyager, Nanoracks, and Lockheed Martin are all teaming up to develop the first-ever free-flying commercial space station with room for a crew of four astronauts. The private companies are joining forces as part of NASA’s greater mission to retire the International Space Station by the year 2030. The low-earth orbit space station will be called "Starlab," and is planned to achieve operational capability by 2027. Lisa Callahan, Vice President and General Manager of Commercial Civil Space at Lockheed Martin, and Matthew J. Kuta, President and Chief Operating Officer of Voyager Space, joined Cheddar’s Opening Bell.
Jill and Carlo cover the latest developments in the Alec Baldwin prop gun shooting, when vaccines for kids as young as 5 should be approved, new reporting on Facebook and more.
