Meanwhile, with a market capitalization of around $70 billion, Uber has plenty of capital – some of which it is already using to fund development of autonomous and fully driverless vehicles. Its smartphone app is already on millions of phones and might simply need to add another button to let a user choose between a ground-based ride and one taking to the air. ![]() With its well-established ride-sharing service now operating in nearly 600 cities around the world, Uber does have some potential advantages in establishing a flight-on-demand service. Google co-founder Larry Page reportedly has funded another start-up called Zee.Aero. ![]() Uber is the latest in a growing list of companies exploring the possibility of flying cabs, a list that includes the Munich-based start-up Lilium, as well as aerospace giant Airbus, which recently revealed a concept called Vahana. (Has the era of the flying car finally arrived? Click Here for the latest.) Other partners include aircraft manufacturers Embraer and Bell Helicopter, as well as Aurora Flight Sciences, a company that would develop some of the technology needed for the service. Uber hopes to demo the project in time for the 2020 World Expo in Dubai. The ride-sharing firm says it is partnering with both Dallas and Dubai to initiate the Uber Elevate Network – the Mideast city-state hopes to have the pilot program ready to launch in time for the 2020 World Expo there. “That’s why we’re working to make ‘Push a button, get a flight’ a reality.” ![]() “Urban aviation is a natural next step for Uber,” chief product officer Jeff Holden said ahead of the opening of the three-day Uber Elevate Summit in Dallas. At a summit meeting in Dallas, Uber officials revealed plans to begin test flights by 2020 in Dallas and Dubai for what the company plans to call Uber Elevate. It looks like ride-sharing service Uber is about to take off – quite literally.Īlready running tests on a network of autonomous vehicles, Uber now wants to launch a flying taxi service. An artist's rendering shows an Uber Elevates VTOL approaching Dallas.
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