Richard Branson Invests in Hyperloop One

Hyperloop One – the world’s biggest company working on Elon Musk’s revolutionary transit technology – is receiving huge investment from Virgin founder Richard Branson. Branson is pumping undisclosed millions into the rebranded Virgin Hyperloop One and taking a seat on the board of directors.

Hyperloop One

So far, Hyperloop One is the company closest to making Musk’s open source technology available to commuters. Already, Hyperloop One built a test track in the Nevada desert and is looking at full-scale operations in California and the United Arab Emirates.

Branson Says

Branson is adding Hyperloop to his Virgin transport portfolio, which includes an airline, UK train network, and passenger space service. He said (via CNBC):

“As a train owner, I felt this is something that I want to be able to operate. At the moment our trains are limited to 125 miles an hour.

There are consumers, for instance, that would love to go from London to Edinburgh in roughly 45 minutes. And that will be possible [with hyperloop].

You can have a pod outside your office that you and your colleagues can jump into. The pod can self drive to the top of the tunnel. It then goes down the tunnel. It connects up and off you go at 600, 700 miles an hour up to your destination, going faster than an airline.”