Dubai's Interest in the Hyperloop Is Shockingly Sensible

The race continues to develop the Hyperloop, the science fiction-like system that would propel passengers or goods through low pressure tubes at speeds faster than some airplanes. A trip from Los Angeles to San Francisco, normally a six-hour drive, would be reduced to 30 minutes. The Silicon Valley startup Hyperloop One is testing the technology in a patch of Nevada desert, and competitor Hyperloop Transportation Technologies is building a test track in California.

But the latest in the Hyperloop story is that it’s going global. While there are rumblings of Hyperloop development in Russia and India, among other countries, the emirate of Dubai is particularly interested in the technology. Dubai’s government will host a two-day competition in September in which teams from around the world will present Hyperloop designs to judges.