- A.L.I. Technologies a Japanese start-up is hoping to convince motorists to swap their cars for a $680,000 (£495,000) hoverbike.
- Each is equipped with a conventional engine and four battery-powered motors.
- Overcrowding is a big problem for Tokyo’s 13.5 million residents.
- The high-tech city is the most populous metropolitan area in the world.
A Japanese start-up is attempting to persuade motorists to ditch their automobiles in favour of a hoverbike that costs $680,000 (£495,000), as reported by BBC.
Hoverbike
The XTurismo Limited Edition from ALI Technologies went on sale in Japan on Wednesday
Two of the company’s investors are Mitsubishi Electronics and player Keisuke Honda.
The hoverbike, according to ALI Technologies, can fly for 40 minutes at speeds of up to 100 km/h (62 mph) on a single charge.
By mid-2022, the business hopes to have produced 200 single-rider 300kg (47-stone) hoverbikes.
Each has a traditional engine as well as four battery-powered motors.
A new mode of transportation
“Until recently, the decision has been to move on the ground or at scale in the sky,” said Daisuke Katano, CEO of ALI Technologies.
“We intend to introduce a new mode of transportation.”
For Tokyo’s 13.5 million citizens, overcrowding is a major issue.
The world’s most populous metropolitan region is a high-tech city.
However, present restrictions will prevent hoverbikes from flying over Japan’s congested highways.
Mr Katano, on the other hand, expects that they will be used by rescue teams to reach remote locations.
Into the real world
Vehicles that once looked a long way off, according to Ben Gardner of Pinsent Masons, are becoming more tangible every year.
“In the end, there’s a chance we’ll see the vehicle deployed in the UK,” he stated.
Under current UK regulations, the hoverbike would not be declared roadworthy.
Mr Gardner, on the other hand, believes that a recent emphasis on new technology may foreshadow a shift.
“The present trials of developing technologies like driverless automobiles, autonomous robotics, and drones show that there is a blueprint for new modes of transportation to move out of science fiction and into the real world,” he said.
Venture capitalists, aviation corporations and even rideshare company Uber are staking claims on the burgeoning flying automotive industry. Analysts say the industry could be worth as much as $1.5tn by 2040 – a fifth of which will be in cars.
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Source: BBC
