India’s Hyperloop Goals to Touch World Record

India is racing toward a transportation revolution, with hyperloop technology at the center of its ambitions. From building Asia’s longest hyperloop test tube to placing the world’s first live commercial order for hyperloop‑based cargo logistics, the country is positioning itself as a global leader in high‑speed, carbon‑neutral mobility.

Asia’s Longest Hyperloop Tube

• Location: IIT Madras, Chennai
• Length: 410 meters (1,345 feet) — currently the longest hyperloop test tube in Asia
• Technology: Developed entirely with indigenous engineering and materials
• Purpose: A test facility for pods designed to travel at speeds exceeding 1,000 km/h (621 mph)
• Global Standing: With planned extensions, IIT Madras could soon host the world’s longest hyperloop test track

This achievement underscores India’s commitment to self‑reliance in advanced transport R&D and sets the stage for real‑world hyperloop deployment.

World’s First Commercial Hyperloop Cargo Order

In January 2026, India made history by placing the world’s first live commercial order for hyperloop‑based cargo logistics. Reported by Urban Transport News, this milestone marks the transition of hyperloop from experimental technology to real‑world logistics deployment.

• Global First: India became the first country to move hyperloop beyond pilot testing into commercial use
• Cargo Focus: The order emphasizes freight logistics, aligning with India’s industrial priorities
• Strategic Leap: This positions India ahead of global competitors in hyperloop adoption
• Policy Backing: The move dovetails with India’s mega mobility plan, which includes hyperloop alongside ropeways, electric rapid transit, and cable cars

India’s Planned Hyperloop Corridors

Mumbai–Pune

• Status: Approved pilot project of 40 km
• Travel Time: Cut from 3 hours to 25 minutes
• Focus: Passenger transport
• Challenges: Land acquisition and high costs (~₹70,000 crore)

Delhi–Mumbai

• Status: Proposal by DGWHyperloop
• Travel Time: Delhi–Mumbai in 80 minutes
• Focus: Freight‑first corridor, enabling cargo delivery at 1,000 km/h
• Impact: Could transform logistics across India’s busiest industrial belt

Bengaluru–Chennai

• Status: Early‑stage proposal
• Travel Time: ~350 km journey reduced to 30 minutes
• Focus: Passenger transport linking two tech hubs

📊 Global Context

Location	Length	Status	Notes
IIT Madras, India	410 m	Longest in Asia	Indigenous tech
USA (Virgin Hyperloop, Nevada)	~500 m	Test track	Private‑led
Switzerland (Swisspod)	~200 m	Operational	European R&D
Spain (Zeleros)	~100 m	Prototype	Scalable design

⚠️ Possible Challenges

• Cost: Projects often exceed ₹50,000–70,000 crore
• Safety: Passenger safety at extreme speeds remains unproven globally
• Policy Framework: India needs a dedicated hyperloop certification and regulatory system
• Global Competition: The US, UAE, and Europe are also advancing hyperloop R&D

Strategic Outlook

India’s hyperloop journey is no longer just conceptual—it’s moving into commercial reality. With Asia’s longest test tube operational, a pilot corridor approved, ambitious freight‑first proposals, and the world’s first commercial hyperloop cargo order, India is aiming not just to catch up but to set world records in hyperloop deployment.

If successful, these projects could redefine how people and goods move across the subcontinent, making India a global hub for futuristic transport innovation.

Tata Steel and TuTr Hyperloop Sign MoA to Develop and Deploy Hyperloop Technology, the Future of High-Speed Sustainable Mobility System

Tata Steel and TuTr Hyperloop signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) at IIT Madras on December 23, 2022, to jointly work on development and deployment of Hyperloop technology at scale. The main research areas will focus on key challenges of design and materials selection.

Hyperloop is a future option for high-speed, low cost, sustainable transport system for both passengers and cargo. The hyperloop system has key elements such as tubes, pods, propulsion systems, and track. Autonomous, levitated pods travel through a network of evacuated tubes. It promises 10x more energy-efficiency than road transport and aviation, uses 2-3x less space than rail and road, and enables shorter travel duration than aviation.

Dr. Debashish Bhattacharjee, Vice President, Technology & New Materials Business, Tata Steel, said: “We encourage and foster homegrown technologies and are committed to drive them towards commercial success. Globally, Hyperloop holds huge potential for high-speed sustainable transportation of tomorrow. We believe that this disruptive mobility technology can achieve its stated objective through concerted efforts of TuTr Hyperloop and Tata Steel, leveraging their core capabilities. As a materials company committed to sustainable business, we will contribute to finding solutions to critical challenges in the Hyperloop journey by leveraging our R&D capabilities and the Tata ecosystem.”

R Balaji, Co-founder & CEO, TuTr Hyperloop said: “We are delighted to be working with Tata Steel on this breakthrough project. We are currently developing and testing various options to make Hyperloop technology solution a global benchmark in terms of cost and efficiency. To meet this objective, we need to leverage the capabilities of global leaders like Tata Steel. Partnership with Tata Steel will enable us to solve materials and design related challenges and drive Hyperloop to become a reality.”

Tata Steel has core expertise in design & development of steel and composite materials. In line with its strategic intent to develop future ready sustainable business, Tata Steel has identified Hyperloop as an opportune breakthrough technology in the area of future mobility. TuTr, a deeptech startup incubated out of IIT Madras, India, is a front runner in this space and is promising a low-cost hyperloop solution as its key value proposition. TuTr has unique strength in pod and propulsion system design. Tata Steel and TuTr jointly aim to design, develop, and scale up the technology for commercialisation.

The phase-I work will happen on the 50m test track at IIT Madras. The subsequent work to achieve a 10-km track will be completed in Phase II & III involving a consortium of other industry partners from the Automotive, Construction and Engineering sectors.

About TuTr Hyperloop

TuTr Hyperloop is a deeptech startup that is focused on developing hyperloop technologies. Its endeavour is to provide customers with fast and reliable ‘on-demand’ transportation that is both affordable and greener in comparison with other modes of transport. Currently, India’s (and Asia’s) first hyperloop test track is under implementation at the Discovery campus of IIT Madras. TuTr seeks to leverage its partnership with IIT Madras and its co-location with India’s largest deep tech ecosystem to catalyse the development of cost-effective Hyperloop technologies that help enhance the productivity of various industries by solving their pain points with regards to goods movement.

About Tata Steel

Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 34 million tonnes per annum. It is one of the world's most geographically diversified steel producers, with operations and commercial presence across the world. The group recorded a consolidated turnover of US $ 32.83 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2022.

A Great Place to Work-CertifiedTM organisation, Tata Steel Limited, together with its subsidiaries, associates, and joint ventures, is spread across five continents with an employee base of over 65,000. Tata Steel has been a part of the DJSI Emerging Markets Index since 2012 and has been consistently ranked amongst top 10 steel companies in the DJSI Corporate Sustainability Assessment since 2016. Besides being a member of ResponsibleSteelTM, worldsteel’s Climate Action Programme and World Economic Forum’s Global Parity Alliance, Tata Steel has won several awards and recognitions including the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse recognition for its Jamshedpur, Kalinganagar and IJmuiden Plants, and Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best performing integrated steel plant for 2016-17. The Company, ranked as India’s most valuable Metals & Mining brand by Brand Finance, featured amongst CII Top 25 innovative Indian Companies in 2021 and top 10 sustainable organisations of India Hurun Research Institute in the 2021 Capri Global Capital Hurun India Impact 50, received Steel Sustainability Champion recognition from worldsteel for five years in a row, ‘Most Ethical Company’ award 2021 from Ethisphere Institute, RIMS India ERM Award of Distinction 2021, Masters of Risk - Metals & Mining Sector recognition at The India Risk Management Awards for the sixth consecutive year, and Award for Excellence in Financial Reporting FY20 from ICAI, among several others.

To know more, visit www.tatasteel.com and www.wealsomaketomorrow.com.

Disclaimer

Statements in this press release describing the Company’s performance may be “forward looking statements” within the meaning of applicable securities laws and regulations. Actual results may differ materially from those directly or indirectly expressed, inferred or implied. Important factors that could make a difference to the Company’s operations include, among others, economic conditions affecting demand/ supply and price conditions in the domestic and overseas markets in which the Company operates, changes in or due to the environment, Government regulations, laws, statutes, judicial pronouncements and/ or other incidental factors.

Mumbai-Pune Hyperloop Project gets Infrastructure Status

The Maharashtra government on Tuesday accorded the infrastructure status to the Mumbai-Pune ultra-fast hyperloop transport project that seeks to reduce the travel time between the two cities to just 23 minutes. At present, the travel time taken by trains between the two cities is three-and-a-half to four hours.

The state Cabinet approved a proposal to give infrastructure status to the project at a meeting in Mumbai.

The Cabinet also approved formation of a consortium of DP World FZE and Hyperloop Technologies as proponents of the original project, according to a statement from the Chief Minister's Office.

Hyperloop is a ultramodern, superfast transport project which is being implemented to link Mumbai and Pune,
which are located around 200km apart. It will run from BKCin Mumbai to Wakadin Pune, covering a distance of 117.5 km.

The hyperloop train will run at a speed of 496 km per hour and cover the distance between the two cities in just 23
minutes, the statement said.

The FDI in the entire project, which will take seven years for completion, is to the tune of Rs 70,000 crore, the
statement said.

In the first phase, the project will be run on a pilot basis for 11.8km in the Pune Metropolitan region at a cost of
Rs 5,000 crore, it added. PTI MR

For Presenting Hyperloop Concept to Elon Musk, IIT Madras Student Team gets P2P Firm RupeeCircle as Sponsor

P2P lending firm RupeeCircle has recently associated itself with Avishkar Hyperloop, a student team of IIT Madras, as a financial partner. Avishkar Hyperloop is a dynamic team of engineers and designers who have been shortlisted for the final round of SpaceX Hyperloop Pod competition 2019 to be held in Los Angeles, California in July 2019. With this association RupeeCircle will sponsor the student group’s mission to beat 20 other finalists in the competition.

Ajit Kumar, Founder & CEO , RupeeCircle

RupeeCircle Founder and CEO, Mr. Ajit Kumar said, “We aim to be at the forefront of technology that would impact the global business landscape and would continue promoting initiatives that can benefit the masses. At this outset, it is a privilege to be a part of this talented and innovative group of people and support them in innovative solutions. As a start-up we are aware of the hurdles that innovators face on their quest to success, and that’s the reason why RupeeCircle decided to team up with Avishkar and support them in the monetary aspect of their mission".

Speaking on the competition and collaboration with RupeeCircle, Mr. Pranit Mehta, an IIT Madras graduate, Head - Avishkar Hyperloop Business Team, said, “We are thrilled to be the finalists at SpaceX Hyperloop Pod competition and look forward to compete with the best minds in the world at the event. We are also thankful to RupeeCircle who came forward and decided to sponsor us."

[caption id="attachment_131113" align="aligncenter" width="800"] The Avishkar Hyperloop Team[/caption]

Avishkar Hyperloopis comprised of a group of enterprising engineers, designers and business think tanks who work together at the Centre For Innovation (CFI) – a student innovation lab at IIT Madras – with the goal of designing and developing a new mode of transport, the Hyperloop. The concept of Hyperloop was floated by Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and SpaceX, and has the potential to revolutionize the transportation industry. The competition itself is sponsored by SpaceX to create awareness and bring the best minds in the world together to work on the concept. Avishkar Hyperloop team from IIT Madras has cleared the Preliminary Design Briefing among hundreds of participants across the globe and are preparing for the final round to be held in Los Angeles, California.

RupeeCircle, RBI licensed (NBFC-P2P) and backed by Mahindra Finance, is the fastest growing and most trusted P2P lending company in India. It was recently chosen to be an official part of Bharat Inclusion Initiative – an inclusion drive of CIIE, IIM Ahmedabad.RupeeCircledisburses loans after stringent credit underwriting process on its proprietary algorithm that measures about 2000+ data points of the borrower, including financial, social and work profiles.

World's First Operational Hyperloop To Come Up On Mumbai-Pune Route, Courtesy Virgin

US-based Hyperloop One (called Virgin Hyperloop One since the end of 2017) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Maharashtra government to develop the world’s first operational hyperloop between Mumbai and Pune by 2025, reported Bloomberg Quint.

Backed by Richard Branson’s investee company Virgin, Hyperloop One will develop and construct a Hyperloop between Mumbai and Pune, reducing the travel time to cover the 140-km distance between Mumbai and Pune to 14-25 minutes, from 3-4 hours at present.



India may be the first country to have an operational Hyperloop, he said in an interaction with a select group of journalists on the sidelines of Magnetic Maharashtra Global Business Summit in Mumbai.

"Virgin Hyperloop One can help India become a global transportation pioneer and forge a new world-changing industry", said Branson.



"As our team’s studies have found, the Pune-Mumbai route could result in USD $55 billion (INR ₹350,000 crores) in socio-economic benefits, time savings, accident reduction and operational cost savings, over 30 years of operation", he added.

The concept of Hyperloop transportation was introduced and named by Elon Musk in August 2013, although he is not involved with Hyperloop One or any other company developing Hyperloop.

In May 2017, Hyperloop One became the only company in the world that has built a fully operational Hyperloop system, when it made a 500-meter Development Loop (DevLoop) in North Las Vegas, US.

In September 2017, Virgin Hyperloop One's biggest rival Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) also signed a MoU with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB), to facilitate the development of HTT’s Hyperloop transportation between Vijaywada and Amaravati, and potentially turning a trip of more than one hour into a 6 minute ride.

HTT was also reportedly in talks with five other Indian sates to begin trials for their high-speed transportation technology in the country. Later, the next month, HTT announced that it has began construction of the world’s first full scale Passenger Hyperloop Capsule, which will be delivered in early 2018. But now it seems like Virgin Hyperloop has won the race with India being its first testing ground.

To recall, a year back, one of the co-founders of Hyperloop One has launched a rival startup called Arrivo that also aims to develop technology based on the hyperloop architecture.

It is to be noted that, India too have local startup working on Hyperloop transportation technologies and its called Hyperloop India. Founded in 2015 by a small group of students from BITS Pilani, Team Hyperloop India is a unique multi-disciplinary multi-university think tank consisting of 60+ motivated student volunteers in the fields of engineering and business, interested in reinventing transportation in India.

In June last year, Hyperloop India was raising funds through crowdfunding platform Ketto. Later, the startup found its sponsor in Chennai's Hindustan University, who agreed to sponsor the Hyperloop India team, which will help them in realising their mission of participating in the final stage of Elon Musk’s SpaceX Hyperloop Competition Weekend to be held soon in Hawthorne, California.

India To Get Its First Hyperloop Between Amravati and Vijaywada; A 6-Minutes Ride

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies announced today that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB), to facilitate the development of HTT's Hyperloop Transportation System.

The proposed route for the Hyperloop is between the city centers of Vijaywada and Amaravati, potentially turning a trip of more than one hour into a 6 minute ride. The project will use a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model with funding primarily from private investors.

"We are extremely delighted to have entered into a MoU with the Government of Andhra Pradesh to bring the HTT Hyperloop to India," said Mr. Bibop Gresta, Chairman & Co-founder, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies. "In partnering with Andhra Pradesh, HTT will work with local stakeholders to build the regulatory standards necessary for safe and efficient operation."

During Phase 1 of the project, HTT will conduct a six-month feasibility study commencing in October. Working with partners in the public and private sector, HTT will analyze the surrounding cityscapes to create the best route between the two cities while identifying all pertinent stakeholders in the region. After conducting the initial six-month feasibility study, Phase 2 of the project will construct and build HTT's first Hyperloop in India.

"HTT's transportation platform will enrich the IT infrastructure and ecosystem of Andhra Pradesh to a large extent," said Nara Lokesh, Cabinet Minister for Information Technology, Panchayati Raj and Rural Development for the State of Andhra Pradesh. "The Hyperloop will give rise to development of various state-of-the-art technology parks and software clusters in Amaravati, helping to fortify the city's image as a world class leader in science and technology."



Mr. Krishna Kishore, Chief Executive Officer, APEDB said, "Amaravati is a state-of-the-art city being developed in Andhra Pradesh as its de facto capital. In order to boost its image and emerge as the frontier city in future technology, Amaravati is looking forward to collaborating with Hyperloop Transportation Technologies. Hyperloop is a cutting-edge technological disruption in the transportation industry."

Discussing the added benefits of establishing an ultra-high speed connection between the cities, Mr. Kishore added, "Like most of the world-changing technological advancements, HTT aims at collaborating with Government of Andhra Pradesh to foster research and development, in order to bring affordable and low-cost technologies for the masses. This will eventually lead to improved standards of living in the region. The EDB along with Government of Andhra Pradesh will assist Hyperloop Transportation Technologies Inc. (HTT) with all regulatory requirements to develop and implement Hyperloop."

The State of Andhra Pradesh is the seventh largest in India with a population of over 50 million people. Connecting these emerging development regions with ultra-high speed transportation will establish this region as a leader in technological innovation and sustainable development.

If HTT's hyperloop system completed in Amravati, however, it would serve as a big win for India to boast that it has the world's first operating Hyperloop and should provide an economic boon to the region. It will also provide a useful proving ground for a country that has its own deep attachment to the railway and its future.

Hyperloop India Finds Its Sponsor in Chennai's Hindustan University

Get ready, people; India's dream of being on the world map of futuristic transport technology just got a step closer. A month ago, we shared how Hyperloop India, a unique multi-disciplinary multi-university think tank working on reinventing transportation in India had partnered with Bengaluru-based Workbench Projects to build the first pod prototype that could travel twice the speed of a airplane’s speed. While everything else was on track, the only problem that they were facing was in finding funding for the project. And now, that obstacle has been cleared by Chennai-based Hindustan University.

According to latest development, Hindustan University, which is considered amongst the crucial pioneers of Aeronautical Engineering in the Indian subcontinent has agreed to sponsor the Hyperloop India team, which will help them in realising their mission of participating in the final stage of Elon Musk's SpaceX Hyperloop Competition Weekend to be held soon in Hawthorne, California.

Hyperloop India consists of 80 students from BITS Pilani, Indian School of Business (ISB), IIM-Ahmedabad, National Institute of Design, RV College of Engineering, Xavier’s Institute of Management, amongst others. Their pod prototype ‘OrcaPod’, which inspired by Orca, the whale, has been selected for the final stage of SpaceX’s Hyperloop Pod Design competition. The Pod is scheduled to be officially unveiled to the world in the last week of July, 2017 at Bengaluru.

For the uninitiated, the Hyperloop system is actually a concept proposed by technology entrepreneur Elon Musk in the year 2012 wherein trains can travel at supersonic speeds up to 800mph (1,300km/h) using reduced pressure tubes. These Pressurised capsule pods also known as the train carriages will ride on an air cushion in steel tubes driven by linear induction motors and air compressors, which allows them to go faster than the trains that are currently in motion. This concept was originally conceptualised and prototyped by American inventor Alfred Beach in the 19th century.

Though Musk proposed the concept, he made clear that he is not interested in commercialising the technology by himself. Hence, now several startups are working on different methods to make their own version of the technology. Hyperloop India is one of these many firms.

Hindustan University has inked a partnership deal with Hyperloop India, which will see the Chennai-based University providing the company a monetary assistance of Rs. 11.5 lakh. The University considers the sponsorship deal as its own way of making a small contribution in encouraging innovation in students to change the future of transport all around the world, especially India.

Commenting on the MoU signed between the two parties, Ashok Verghese, Director, Hindustan University said to The News Minute, “As a country poised towards growth, India has to encourage innovation to bring about solutions to its diverse problems. Also, the purpose of engineers is to resolve those problems in a technically feasible and commercially viable mode."

Hyperloop India Finds Its Sponsor in Chennai's Hindustan University

Get ready, people; India's dream of being on the world map of futuristic transport technology just got a step closer. A month ago, we shared how Hyperloop India, a unique multi-disciplinary multi-university think tank working on reinventing transportation in India had partnered with Bengaluru-based Workbench Projects to build the first pod prototype that could travel twice the speed of a airplane’s speed. While everything else was on track, the only problem that they were facing was in finding funding for the project. And now, that obstacle has been cleared by Chennai-based Hindustan University.

According to latest development, Hindustan University, which is considered amongst the crucial pioneers of Aeronautical Engineering in the Indian subcontinent has agreed to sponsor the Hyperloop India team, which will help them in realising their mission of participating in the final stage of Elon Musk's SpaceX Hyperloop Competition Weekend to be held soon in Hawthorne, California.

Hyperloop India consists of 80 students from BITS Pilani, Indian School of Business (ISB), IIM-Ahmedabad, National Institute of Design, RV College of Engineering, Xavier’s Institute of Management, amongst others. Their pod prototype ‘OrcaPod’, which inspired by Orca, the whale, has been selected for the final stage of SpaceX’s Hyperloop Pod Design competition. The Pod is scheduled to be officially unveiled to the world in the last week of July, 2017 at Bengaluru.

For the uninitiated, the Hyperloop system is actually a concept proposed by technology entrepreneur Elon Musk in the year 2012 wherein trains can travel at supersonic speeds up to 800mph (1,300km/h) using reduced pressure tubes. These Pressurised capsule pods also known as the train carriages will ride on an air cushion in steel tubes driven by linear induction motors and air compressors, which allows them to go faster than the trains that are currently in motion. This concept was originally conceptualised and prototyped by American inventor Alfred Beach in the 19th century.

Though Musk proposed the concept, he made clear that he is not interested in commercialising the technology by himself. Hence, now several startups are working on different methods to make their own version of the technology. Hyperloop India is one of these many firms.

Hindustan University has inked a partnership deal with Hyperloop India, which will see the Chennai-based University providing the company a monetary assistance of Rs. 11.5 lakh. The University considers the sponsorship deal as its own way of making a small contribution in encouraging innovation in students to change the future of transport all around the world, especially India.

Commenting on the MoU signed between the two parties, Ashok Verghese, Director, Hindustan University said to The News Minute, “As a country poised towards growth, India has to encourage innovation to bring about solutions to its diverse problems. Also, the purpose of engineers is to resolve those problems in a technically feasible and commercially viable mode."

Hyperloop India Pacts With Bengaluru Startup To Build First Pod Prototype; To Raise Funds Via Ketto

Six months after the first proposal of building a modern transportation system in India gained ground, Hyperloop India has taken its first step.

Founded in 2015 by a small group of students from BITS Pilani, Team Hyperloop India is a unique multi-disciplinary multi-university think tank consisting of 60+ motivated student volunteers in the fields of engineering and business, interested in reinventing transportation in India. As a primarily student collaboration, our plan is to leverage our performance in global incentive prize competitions to leapfrog transportation in India.

Hyperloop India, which has got backing from Elon Musk, has partnered with Workbench Projects, a Bengaluru-based start-up, which will build the first pod prototype that hypothetically claims to be immune from weather conditions, collision free, travels twice the speed a airplane's speed, consumes low power and comes with energy storage for a whole day.

“We have signed the partnership with Hyperloop India for building a 4x2 metre pod", said Workbench Projects Founder and CEO Pavan Kumar. Engineers from Tesla and SpaceX are working on this transportation pod, which can be used anywhere in the world.

Hyperloop India consists of 80 students from BITS Pilani, Indian School of Business (ISB), IIM-Ahmedabad, National Institute of Design, RV College of Engineering, Xavier’s Institute of Management, amongst others. Their pod prototype 'OrcaPod' has been selected for the final stage of SpaceX’s Hyperloop Pod Design competition, which will be held in California. While the pod is still in the making, the design will be inspired by Orca, the whale.

Hyperlooop India along with Workbench Projects is looking to raise the funds through crowdfunding platform Ketto, to build this pod in India. The amount that they are looking to raise is around Rs. 75 lakh, which, according to Sibesh Kar, Team Lead and Founder, Hyperloop India, would be used to build a most frugal pod in the world.

“The average cost of building (pod) would be Rs. 3 crore,” he said.

Ketto will start an online campaign from late evening under the title 'Join the Loop’ to invite contributions from all over the world, he said. “The campaign will run for the next 45 days, and aims to raise Rs 30 lakh or more to build the – OrcaPod prototype

So far, Hyperlooop and Workbench have managed to raise Rs. 30 lakh from a few corporates and both the Central and Karnataka governments have lent their support for this project.

Further, most of the materials such as high-grade aluminum or FRC will be sourced from India but the magnet, will be sourced from China.

Kar explained that the electrical components, electronics, which would include software programming will all be done locally.

When asked about Intellectual Property, Kar said that as it is still being built and the technology of hyperloop is itself in a nascent stage, the company wants to focus on building the pod first.

Around 80 people, across different disciplines such as engineering, economics and software programmers are collaborating to build this pod.

Hyperloop Transportation in Talks With 5 Indian States' CM; To Invest $100 Million in India

Late last year, we reported that we could soon be seeing the hyperloop technology—a super-high speed pod-like vehicle, on the Indian soil. Back then, a top official from Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) had informed an Indian national daily that the company is currently seeking a nod from the Indian government to begin trials for their high-speed transportation technology in the country. And now comes the news that the US-based startup is in talks with five Indian states to build a high-speed travel network.

According to a recent statement given by HTT's chairman Bibop Gresta to PTI, he said that only does the company have five offers on the table from five Indian chief ministers, but they are also in talks with a corporate house for a local partnership and also an academic institution. He also informed that the company will be soon be raising $100 million in order to invest in the Indian subcontinent. The money will be raised exclusively for HTT's Indian project and from both international and domestic investors.

"We have five offers on the table from five chief ministers. We spoke to them and the one that will give us the land we will go and build. We have local partners and we are now raising $100 million and bringing another investment from abroad," said Gresta.

Founded in 2013, HTT is the first company to rise to the Hyperloop challenge. According to the startup's website, HTT has now become a global team focused on human-centric solutions that remove barriers to speed and efficiency in travel. The company leverages open innovation, technology, and a global community of passionate professionals to deliver the next breakthrough in transporation.



For the uninitiated, the Hyperloop system is actually a concept proposed by technology entrepreneur Elon Musk in the year 2012 wherein trains can travel at supersonic speeds up to 800mph (1,300km/h) using reduced pressure tubes. These Pressurised capsule pods also known as the train carriages will ride on an air cushion in steel tubes driven by linear induction motors and air compressors, which allows them to go faster than the trains that are currently in motion. This concept was originally conceptualised and prototyped by American inventor Alfred Beach in the 19th century.

Though Musk proposed the concept, he made clear that he is not interested in commercialising the technology by himself. Hence, now several startups are working on different methods to make their own version of the technology. On 9 May, 2016, HTT announced that it had licensed a new technology known as passive magnetic levitation to make Hyperloop work.

HTT's interest in India started when Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India, invited the company to India during his U.S. visit in September last year. He also reportedly offered the company a big chunk of land in Pune, a city 118 kilometers away from Mumbai.

According to HTT, as far as they know the Indian government is only in touch with them for the Hyperloop system. Though the startup is a little upset and concerned with the confusion being created by its rival 'Hyperloop One’ in the country.

Hyperloop One is reportedly planning to host a seminar in the national capital this week in its effort to develop base in the second largesse population in the world.

“They (officials) are talking only with us, until now. Their (HO) company is doing an event on 27th. They are confusing a little bit. That confuses the brand Hyperloop. The funny thing is that they convinced the rail minister to go there,” Gresta said to PTI.

So far, HTT has invested a whopping $32 million in the project. It is already in various stages of implementation in UAE, Slovakia and the US.

According to Gresta, the company's action plan for India is to first build a 5-8 km track as part of its feasibility study.

Talking about the contributions of India in developing the HTT Hyperloop technology, Gresta shared that about 30 of the 600 people who contributed to the project are Indians and the company is also looking forward to having an office on the Indian soil and exploring the lucrative opportunity that the company presents. He concluded, “India is a great opportunity right now, and should embrace it. I will do it if I was a wise politician. I am passionate about India because it can be one of the first countries."

For the time being, it seems, HTT has an upper hand over Hyperloop One in making the dream of Hyperloop come true for Indians.

Hyperloop One Co-founder Launches A Rival Startup

Hyperloop One, the company which has been in the news for attempting to build a super-high speed pod-like vehicle, already has a tough competitor in the market. And we say so because the rival company is being spearheaded by one Brogan Bam. Brogan, who had co-founded Hyperloop One -- or Hyperloop Technologies as it was called back then -- in 2014 and worked as its chief technology officer (CTO) until recently.

BamBrogan's new venture is called Arrivo, and aims to develop "technology based on the hyperloop architecture that will deliver a truly 21st century seamless experience for passengers and freight."

The company is working on developing a new kind of transportation system that would allow people seated inside comfy capsules to hurtle along vacuum tubes at high speeds of up to whopping 760 mph. When functional, the transportation system will be able to decrease the journey time between San Francisco and Los Angeles from the current six hours in a car to just 30 minutes.

It was only last year that BamBrogan had accused Hyperloop One of an array of underhand activities and taken it to court. But now, the two parties have settled their case and Hyperloop One has given its nod to its former CTO to develop a transportation system just like the one he was developing when he was with them.

Arrivo's launch team, which comprises of an interesting mix of engineers and executives, includes three former employees of Hyperloop One who left the company along with BamBrogan. The Los Angeles-based company is planning to build a team of at least 80 by the end of this year.

The company is reportedly planning to unveil the details of its hyperloop project to the world, in the coming few months. We're sure that not only Hyperloop One, but also Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, which is also working on a similar technology, will be looking forward to the project's details. The idea for Hyperloop trains was first proposed by Elon Musk in 2013, and are being developed by several firms.

Incorporated in 2014, Hyperloop conducted the first live trial of Hyperloop technology on May 11, 2016 and demonstrated that its custom linear electric motor could propel a sled from 0 to 110 miles an hour in just over one second.

The company has raised $160 million and expects to achieve “first flight” of the complete system (with levitation, propulsion, pod vehicle, control systems and low-pressure tube) early in 2017.

Having more and more firms working on the technology will only push all the participating players to do their best and provide people with the first fully operational hyper-loop system.

On the home front, Hyperloop One is eager to come to India and begin trials for their high-speed transportation technology in the country. The company is currently seeking a nod from the Indian government for the same.

[Image: wired.com]