According to CNN.com:
“As crazy as it sounds, Musk is merely updating an idea that’s been around since the early 1900s, and at least one company is working on a functional prototype. But according to Wired sources, his involvement won’t be nearly as hands-on as Musk’s other endeavors at Tesla Motors and SpaceX.
“The engineering behind the Hyperloop is similar to the old-school pneumatic tube systems used by banks to suck your deposit to the teller at the drive-through. But naturally, it’s more complicated than that.
“A massive vacuum tube — mounted either above ground or even under water — would be combined with a magnetic levitation system used on conventional bullet trains. That means no friction, no wind resistance, no chance of collisions, and insanely high speeds”
Musk began to explore the idea when he reviewed California’s plan to build a high- speed rail.
Online he posted: “When the California ‘high speed’ rail was approved, I was quite disappointed, as I know many others were too. How could it be that the home of Silicon Valley and JPL – doing incredible things like indexing all the world’s knowledge and putting rovers on Mars – would build a bullet train that is both one of the most expensive per mile and one of the slowest in the world?”
Musk has said that he will be too busy with SpaceX and Tesla motors to actually run a new company that would drive this innovation. However, he did note that he would like to be involved in the development process of the Hyperloop project.
Although it’s a long way from coming to fruition, Musk’s Hyperloop plans will be examined and talked about for a long time to come. That’s what happens when a billionaire who has made his money launching overreaching technology talks about doing so again.
