Elon Musk HyperLoop: Tesla CEO Plans To Build His Own Tunnel System

Last month, Tesla, SpaceX and Boring Company CEO Elon Musk announced he received verbal approval from the government to build an underground Hyperloop in the East coast. Now, it seems Musk is trying to build the entire Hyperloop system himself, without the need of other startups with similar plans, according to a Bloomberg report.

Musk introduced the Hyperloop concept in 2013 and conducted research with his SpaceX team. Back then he said he didn’t have any plans to build the Hyperloop because he wanted to focus on SpaceX and Tesla.

Read: Hyperloop One Tube Test: Passenger Pod Reaches Nearly 200 MPH

Musk suggested he didn’t plan on building his own Hyperloop. Instead, SpaceX held a Hyperloop competition right outside its headquarters this past January. The competition included various teams made up of university students and independent engineers. In the middle of the competition, Musk made it clear that he had other ambitions, as he announced he would start digging a tunnel for cars in an effort to ease traffic in Los Angeles. He then went on to start the Boring Company and posted developments of his tunnel project on social media.

Out of the blue, Musk announced last month he would build a Hyperloop that would transport passengers from New York to Washington D.C. in 29 minutes. His news left other startups that had already started working on their own high-speed train projects surprised, according to Bloomberg.

Musk’s recent announcement could threaten the plans of other startups like Hyperloop One, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies and Arrivo. Three hyperloop startups have already raised about $200 million combined from venture backers.

Musk also holds a trademark for “Hyperloop” through SpaceX, which means other companies might not be able to use that name. He also owns @ Hyperloop on Twitter and the Hyperloop.com site.

However, the Boring Company assured there’s no bad blood.

“While we’re encouraged that others are making some progress, we would like to accelerate the development of this technology as fast as possible,’’ the company told Bloomberg. “We encourage and support all companies that wish to build Hyperloops and we don’t intend to stop them from using the Hyperloop name as long as they are truthful.”

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Three Companies Working On The Hyperloop

The other three startups also expressed their optimism. Hyperloop One chairman Shervin Pishevar said on Bloomberg TV that Musk’s interest could be a good thing for the industry, since it would bring more attention and credibility.

Nearly two weeks after Musk’s tweet about his hyperloop plans, Hyperloop One announced its successful second testing of its pod, which will transport passengers and cargo. The vehicle ran 192 miles per hour (310 kph) inside the DevLoop, a test site in the Nevada desert. The test was conducted on July 29, just days after Musk’s announcement.

The DevLoop in Nevada is in preparation for the installation of the commercial tube that will allow people to travel from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, about a 100 mile stretch, in less than 15 minutes. The company was also said to be talking to Russia about installing a hyperloop system there as well.

Hyperloop One plans to transport cargo with its technology by 2020 and passengers by 2021, its site says. The company’s CEO, Rob Lloyd, said this week Hyperloop One was ready to begin discussions with partners, customers and governments worldwide over the commercialization of the tube and pod -- which puts it a step ahead of Musk.

International Business Times has reached out Hyperloop One for comment.

The other competing startup, Arrivo, was started by Brogan BamBrogan, who worked as a senior engineer at SpaceX and then went on to start Hyperloop One with Pishevar. He then departed Hyperloop One and started Arrivo.

“We’re glad that companies such as the Boring Co. and others are advancing the state of the art,” he told Bloomberg.

Andrew Quintero, co-founder of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, talked about the company’s plan with SpaceX before launching in 2013. Dirk Ahlborn, CEO of HTT was favorable towards Musk, saying : “He’s supporting the community.”

Meanwhile, Musk is set to hold another hyperloop competition at the end of this month in Hawthorne, California, which will focus on maximum speed.

“The competition’s goal is to accelerate the development of functional prototypes and encourage innovation by challenging teams to design and build the best high-speed pod,” the SpaceX site says.