unveiling this while CA is deep in the hole with it's bullet-train project (something I support wholeheartedly btw) is pretty arrogant
Knowing how CA politics works (and the CA rail projects are amazingly political), how would you expect a non-arrogant to even get traction with this?
I have no doubt that Musk will solve the Hyperloop technical issues. I very much have doubts about him navigating Sacramento.
― Elvis Telecom, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 04:40 (eleven years ago)
I was describing this to my wife today and kept calling it Supertube.
― "Turkey In The Straw" coming from someplace in the clouds (Sparkle Motion), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 05:14 (eleven years ago)
Bad connotations...
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/supertrain-1_7696.jpg
― Elvis Telecom, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 05:21 (eleven years ago)
lol @ the "open source" pdf proposal. build a section of the thing and then get back to us when you have it working.
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 06:23 (eleven years ago)
Musk says the Hyperloop is best for distances of 900 miles. Beyond 900 miles, he thinks you're better off in a supersonic jet.
Lol
― joe sixpac hologram (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 11:33 (eleven years ago)
I never use my supersonic jet anymore as parking is always a total bitch
― joe sixpac hologram (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 11:35 (eleven years ago)
I have to say I rather like Elon Musk. He's made a massive pile of money and rather than sitting on it or managing it in mundane ways; he's making risky bets on thinks he's passionate about: Cars, Rockets, vacuum tubes.
Hyperloop seems a bit ridiculous to me, vacuum tube powered trains and trains in evacuated tubes are an old chestnut, almost as old as railways themselves. However, he's built a commercially viable private space programme and a car company* in the last ten years so anything is possible.
*Tesla isn't really a car company it's a power train company and if it is still making cars in 5 years I'll be surprised.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:18 (eleven years ago)
ya i'm kinda ll for crackpot genius billionaires actually doing interesting stuff, up until they become str8 up supervillains obv
― darraghmac, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:23 (eleven years ago)
lol @ the "open source" pdf proposal. build a section of the thing and then get back to us when you have it working.― wk, Tuesday, August 13, 2013 2:23 AM
― wk, Tuesday, August 13, 2013 2:23 AM
he might do this
― markers, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:23 (eleven years ago)
is this dude one of the crazy silicon valley libertarian types or is he just beloved by them?
― carlos danger zone (mh), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:27 (eleven years ago)
iirc he has liberal tendencies mixed in w the libertarianism
― lag∞n, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:28 (eleven years ago)
xp I heard him speak and he seemed not crazy and to have some kind of social or at least environmental conscience, unlike the usual libertarian types, but maybe he's just better at hiding it
(I like him too fwiw and right now he seems one of the most likely "crackpot genius billionaires" to solve some hard problems which are overdue for solving, so I hope he carries on with that. Also hoping that one day I'll get to see/read his computer game that appeared in some 8-bit micro type-in listings mag in the 80s)
― the supreme personality of Godhead : a summary study (a passing spacecadet), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:35 (eleven years ago)
he's not as bad as some of the other silicon valley libtards, I'll give him that.
nonetheless, this is a stupid proposal
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:35 (eleven years ago)
do tell
curious to read a critique that amounts to more than 'hyperlol'
― BIG HOOS aka the denigrated boogeyman (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 15:48 (eleven years ago)
I think it's dumb that he's throwing around numbers when he doesn't even have a working prototype. It just seems like he's hoping to derail the other project. I also think the "open source" thing is pretty silly since it's not like code where an individual can make some kind of improvement and test it out to see if it works. I guess an open source design is an interesting idea after the fact if he actually gets it working and other people want to build his design, but it still seems basically irrelevant.
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:15 (eleven years ago)
Didn't he make his fortune with Peter thiel?I don't know if that is "guilt by association" or "looking better by comparison"
― Philip Nunez, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:15 (eleven years ago)
It just seems like he's hoping to derail the other project
^^^
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:18 (eleven years ago)
A key part of his criticism of the other rail plan is that it's "more expensive to operate (if unsubsidized)." I'd like to see some more detailed numbers on that though. Why would we count the cost of unsubsidized rail against air travel which is heavily subsidized? All that really matters is cost to the traveller, and unlike airlines, I'm assuming the high speed rail system is not going to be run as a for-profit business. He also makes no comparison of the environmental costs of air flight vs. the planned high speed rail system.
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:26 (eleven years ago)
markers, here are some of the people that were entertainingly scathing: kalebhorton, quartzcity, tcarmody, mikesonn
― eris bueller (lukas), Monday, August 12, 2013 11:24 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
I'm generally contemptuous of futurists, primarily because they seem to think energy and climate change problems will just sort themselves out, but a mass transit system that relies on solar power and transports people across one of the busiest stretches of highway in America is a good thing. I looked at the first two feeds you suggested and they seemed to just be saying this is just a toy for rich people, which is afaict completely unsupported by his proposal. He's not suggesting a magic carpet for billionaires; it's mass transit that uses solar power. This is a good thing! Maybe it's completely impossible hogwash, but I'd like to see actual engineering criticism of it instead of casual dismissals based on suspicion of ideas from rich people.
― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:41 (eleven years ago)
the main challenges are not engineering-related, their political
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:43 (eleven years ago)
anybody who is over the age of 25, has lived in a city for any length of time, and paid a modicum of attention to the world around them knows that these kinds of massive public works projects tend to be underbid by shady contractors and then they go wildly over the original schedule and budget. so the fact that he's coming in saying he can do it so much cheaper with a totally new and untested technology is a huge red flag. to me it immediately suggests that the whole thing is not serious.
if he honestly thinks this is a feasible plan he should raise some funding and build a private line from LA to Vegas.
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 16:54 (eleven years ago)
It's transparently unserious in that he doesn't want to do it himself and "regrets even mentioning it"
― Philip Nunez, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:08 (eleven years ago)
right, that aspect has been p funny
― BIG HOOS aka the denigrated boogeyman (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:10 (eleven years ago)
haha, I missed that part
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:11 (eleven years ago)
ya seems like he said something offhandedly then realized abt his celebrity
― lag∞n, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:12 (eleven years ago)
a mass transit system that relies on solar power and transports people across one of the busiest stretches of highway in America is a good thing.
people don't commute the LA to SF corridor though. i have a hard time believing a transit system would fill the role of the 5 freeway. it's mostly trucks anyway.
― the late great, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:13 (eleven years ago)
You know what would do really well in transportation corridors like that? Plain old freight trains.
I swear, the interstate highway system and the fact it's mostly used for semi truck freight is the biggest money hole in our post-WW2 car-dependent wonderland
― carlos danger zone (mh), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:15 (eleven years ago)
there already are freight trains
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:16 (eleven years ago)
people don't commute the LA to SF corridor though.
?! they most certainly do. there are these things called commuter flights, they are booked solid all the time.
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:17 (eleven years ago)
there are a lot more trucks xp
― carlos danger zone (mh), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:17 (eleven years ago)
what exactly are you proposing?
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:20 (eleven years ago)
a solar powered superhighway paved with bitcoins duh
― BIG HOOS aka the denigrated boogeyman (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:21 (eleven years ago)
that we subsidize more public transport of freight in addition to passengers? or at least reallocate money away from interstate highways
idk, iatee and his ideas about gas prices to thread
― carlos danger zone (mh), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:21 (eleven years ago)
HOOS otm
ah, ok. I thought maybe there was a problem with CA's existing freight lines. I don't really know anything about them but I do see freight trains going up and down the state all the time.
― wk, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:24 (eleven years ago)
If this thing actually worked the political will would develop pretty quickly. If the Acela line was shipping people 400 miles in 30 minutes every state would want one.
Which is why yeah, he should just fucking build one. I wonder what a good demonstration distance would be.
― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:30 (eleven years ago)
L.A. to S.D.?
― cops on horse (WilliamC), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:52 (eleven years ago)
http://www.humancannonball.us/IMAGES/photos/017.jpg
― HOOS next aka won't get steened again (Hurting 2), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:53 (eleven years ago)
what are the possible operating failure modes on one these loops
― you're better off in a supersonic jet (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:56 (eleven years ago)
giant pillow deployment
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:57 (eleven years ago)
halp im stuck in a tube inside of a tube
― you're better off in a supersonic jet (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:58 (eleven years ago)
*giant sucking sound*
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 17:59 (eleven years ago)
http://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj176/rsjem23/HomerWaterslide.jpg
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:01 (eleven years ago)
homerloop
― BIG HOOS aka the denigrated boogeyman (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:14 (eleven years ago)
i don't understand why this would be a good alternative to commuter flights
I'd rather see the money spent on suburb-to-city trolley lines
― the late great, Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:18 (eleven years ago)
commuter flights are very carbon-intensive, for one thing
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:23 (eleven years ago)
There are ways.
http://opinion-forum.com/index/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/airplane_hybrid.jpg
― Here's the storify, of a lovely ladify (Phil D.), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:25 (eleven years ago)
wouldn't even a dependable normal rail line be comparable to commuter flights by the time you figure in airport screening and boarding times and shit?
― carlos danger zone (mh), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:33 (eleven years ago)
n/m, I am being way optimistic about rail speeds
there is a rail line that runs the California coast, it's called Amtrak
― joe schmoladoo from 7-11 (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 13 August 2013 18:34 (eleven years ago)
it's his self-diagnosed neurodivergence?
just kidding, he's absolutely just an enthusiastically basic person
― ɥɯ ︵ (°□°) (mh), Thursday, 10 July 2025 19:08 (two days ago)
Musk is planning on putting Grok into Teslas "as early as next week"
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2025/07/10/elon-musk-grok-tesla-vehicles/84535654007/
of course I think he's been promising full self-driving for years and it's still not there. Maybe he's planning on letting Grok drive the cars, in which case, expect a lot of POC, jewish, and trans people to start getting run over.
― I? not I! He! He! HIM! (akm), Thursday, 10 July 2025 19:41 (two days ago)
Cool, now we can have cars driving around blasting hate speech!
― better than ezra collective soul asylum (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Thursday, 10 July 2025 19:44 (two days ago)
Cool, now we can have cars driving around blasting hate speech!― better than ezra collective soul asylum (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Thursday, July 10, 2025 12:44 PM (seven minutes ago)
― better than ezra collective soul asylum (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Thursday, July 10, 2025 12:44 PM (seven minutes ago)
Maybe Musk was inspired by a recent visit to Japan lol.
― imperial frfr (Steve Shasta), Thursday, 10 July 2025 20:01 (two days ago)
my company is fairly loose with the internet rules, but whenever I click a reddit link, I get a network notice saying 'aww hell no bruh'... not sure why
― Andy the Grasshopper, Thursday, 10 July 2025 20:23 (two days ago)
he's been promising full self-driving for years and it's still not there
may I remind you of the MTV Tesla currently orbiting our planet
― Andy the Grasshopper, Thursday, 10 July 2025 20:25 (two days ago)
I have to snooze my VPN to visit a lot of subreddits.
― WmC, Thursday, 10 July 2025 20:28 (two days ago)
Some sites won't work at all with a VPN, notably rateyourmusic, and it usually stops you editing on wikipedia.
― Proust Ian Rush (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Thursday, 10 July 2025 20:49 (two days ago)
https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:kft6lu4trxowqmter2b6vg6z/bafkreiesgr7tj3uvsofjs6uvqjzhb6r2bz5g7u2pc4s5fm2xjh4ckjv7ei@jpeg
https://bsky.app/profile/simonwillison.net/post/3ltngc7yn5s2b
― lag∞n, Thursday, 10 July 2025 23:04 (two days ago)
is that real??
― Andy the Grasshopper, Thursday, 10 July 2025 23:10 (two days ago)
seems like it
― lag∞n, Thursday, 10 July 2025 23:12 (two days ago)
saying the quiet part loud
― Andy the Grasshopper, Thursday, 10 July 2025 23:25 (two days ago)
His blog post about it is here, for those who don't use Bluesky:
https://simonwillison.net/2025/Jul/11/grok-musk/
― Alba, Friday, 11 July 2025 05:57 (yesterday)