Hyperloop One Receives Boost In Funding For Underground Transport
Hyperloop One received more funding than they expected from investors in September, showing how much interest there is in underground transportation. It'll require more after estimated costs of construction, but the future looks promising.
Updated Nov. 19 2020, 9:39 p.m. ET
Excitement for the growing underground transportation industry continues to explode with investors giving an additional $85 million in funding to Hyperloop One. For perspective, the company has now raised $245 million since launching three years ago. They join Elon Musk’s Boring Company in an effort to bring alternative transportation to the world.
Investors for the round of funding that took place in September include DP World, Caspian VC Partners, WTI, and OurCrowd.com. According to Recode, Hyperloop One is now valued at $700 million. Shervin Pishevar, the company’s executive chairman and co-founder, said they were expected to raise $50 million and ended up getting $35 million more.
One of the reasons they received more funding was likely due to recent testing success and the announcement of underground routes around the world. Hyperloop One underwent successful large-scale testing this past summer in a Nevada desert, charting nearly 200 miles per hour. This second phase of testing was considerably more demanding. Luckily, it was also more rewarding as it went nearly five times further and three times faster than the first phase.
Back on September 14th, the company announced winners from their Global Challenge with 10 potential routes around the world. Four of them were announced in the United States: Colorado, Texas, Florida, and one that went from Chicago to Pittsburgh. The other six would be in the United Kingdom, Mexico, India, and Canada.
"The fact that we have made so much progress with governments around the world speaks to the transformative nature of Hyperloop One's technology and the material transportation and societal benefits it unlocks,” Brent Callinicos, Hyperloop One’s Chief Operating and Financial Officer, said in a press release. “The demand expressed by investors in this round highlights how far we've come in such a short period of time."
While it’s an exciting time in the hyperloop industry, there’s still plenty of work and funding to be done. They were able to receive more money than expected, but in Colorado alone, building a hyperloop route is expected to cost around $24 billion. According to The Denver Post, routes would be completed in steps, with the first being a 40-mile track under the Denver airport.
Ultimately, the hyperloop is expected to bring in $2 billion annually by 2040 when it’s completed. The path would stretch north to Cheyenne and south to Pueblo, and another route heading west to Vail, all sprawling from the Denver International Airport. There would be frequent stops along these paths, such as Boulder, Fort Collins, and Colorado Springs.
Elon Musk has also made strides in the hyperloop industry, receiving verbal approval to build a path from New York to Washington D.C. a few months ago. Having an underground path at hyperspeeds looks very promising as technology improves, and we’ll see if more investors decide to bet on it in the future.
