The vac-train concept is from 1799. Maglev tech is decades in production. I remember a Discovery Channel show 20 years ago about trains traveling 5000mph through tunnels at the bottom of the ocean to cross continents in an hour.
Hyperloop is fantastical renaming of old tech without solving any of the fundamental problems of economy, geography, energy and politics. We're capable of building incredible projects if only we had unlimited funding and will.
It's nice to see Tesla and Spacex changing global transportation so maybe better train systems will finally get some attention, but right now this is just not realistic.
Please remind me again how a company with a market share of 0.6% [1] is changing global transportation?
It's fascinating to me how people seem to vastly underestimate the actual volume of the global car market while overestimating the impact of unicorns.
In order to even make a dent in the global market, getting into the double digits would be required.
Even in the market "dominated" by Tesla (e.g. plug-in EVs), their market share is a combined 16.6%, meaning more than 83% of EVs are made by other companies [2]...
Tesla is to the car market quite literally what Apple is in the desktop PC and smartphone markets - a "dominating force" with a tiny market share in the global market.
Tesla already changed global transportation, by dragging auto manufacturers kicking and screaming to make real investments in electric transportation. They've averaged a CAGR of 40% or so for the fast decade and have no intentions of slowing down.
Obviously they won't get 100% of the global auto market, but they're much more influential and dangerous than you'd be led to believe just by looking at their market share.
By the way, SpaceX performed 65% of all the orbital space launches that happened in 2018. Worldwide. Competitors mainly being the ULA and the space programs of sovereign state actors.
These investments are due to changes and mandates from legislation, though, not market pressure [1]. Governments are pushing for total fleet emission limits and automakers are forced to either build EVs or pay fines (or Tesla - same deal).
> By the way, SpaceX performed 65% of all the orbital space launches that happened in 2018.
And that has what to do with EVs and Tesla? Whataboutism at its finest...
Call me pro tesla if you will but I think you're underestimating the influence Tesla has had and is having on the whole planet. Few years ago they were a ridicule curiosity. Now electric vehicles are everywhere, trucks are on the way.
It's highly debatable whether this was due to Tesla or actual legislation, though.
CO² fleet restriction forced the hand of automakers, not 3% EV market share.
A substantial portion of Tesla's operational income comes from CO² certificates from automakers that don't meet the CO² restrictions, by the way [1]. Also something that people tend to overlook.
You're mistaken, VW was caught cheating nitrogen oxide emission standards in America, not CO2. There have been some allegations they may also have been cheating CO2 emissions, but that's not nearly as clear and the nitrogen oxide emissions is really what the big fuss, and arrests, were about.
Market share is just the ranking of sales by brand over an arbitrary time period. It has nothing to do with innovation.
Tesla has clearly revolutionized electric vehicles to the point where they are not just viable but desirable, and are beating traditional luxury and sports manufacturers in technology and driving experience. They've moved the entire industry forward and now every major brand has committed to making electric vehicles.
I find your comparison to Apple strange since Apple has also, quite literally, changed the world with their iPhones.
Hyperloop is fantastical renaming of old tech without solving any of the fundamental problems of economy, geography, energy and politics. We're capable of building incredible projects if only we had unlimited funding and will.
It's nice to see Tesla and Spacex changing global transportation so maybe better train systems will finally get some attention, but right now this is just not realistic.