This video posted by Elon Musk shows SpaceX’s Falcon rocket booster very nearly landing on a tiny platform in the middle of the ocean April 15, 2015 Disappointment all round at SpaceX HQ yesterday, when a rocket booster launched by the company didn't quite touch down properly on a pad – dubbed "Just Read the Instructions" thanks to the mantra printed on it – floating 50 miles out to sea. The rocket booster, which had just come from launching an International Space [...]
Tesla share price jumps after Elon Musk teases new product line March 30, 2015 Elon Musk tweets, markets react. Tesla Motors saw its share price rise by over three per cent today after its founder, billionaire investor and inventor Elon Musk, tweeted that the company would be unveiling a "major new product line" next month. Musk added that the product would diverge from Tesla's main business of designing, manufacturing and selling electric [...]
Richard Branson might jump on the electric car bandwagon March 20, 2015 Richard Branson has hinted that his Virgin brand might jump on the electric car bandwagon (the wagon bandwagon?) at some point in the not-too-distant future. The entrepreneur already has his own Formula E team – an electric version of Formula One which features battery-powered cars racing at speeds of up to 140 mph. But when [...]
Here’s everything we know about Sakti3 – the US startup Dyson just invested $15m in March 16, 2015 Some 15 years into the entrepreneur game, Sir James Dyson has made his first-ever investment outside his own business, after he ploughed $15m (£10m) in US startup Sakti3. The company, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, develops solid-state batteries. The investment was part of a wider, $20m funding round. Dyson said the company will help it [...]
Solar Impulse 2 follows the sun around the world from Abu Dhabi March 9, 2015 SWISS adventurers Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg yesterday took off from Abu Dhabi on a round-the-world flight – with no jet feul. The plane, the “Solar Impulse 2”, is powered by 12,000 solar cells on the wings and weighs about the same as a family car. It can run both day and night off solar [...]
The non-bank of Facebook, AliBay, and AI: The future of global fintech March 5, 2015 The global fintech industry has seen some remarkable developments since we launched Level39 two years ago. But what of the future? I’d like to suggest two possibilities for what might happen, and challenge one that, contrary to some current thinking, I don’t think will. FACEBOOK: THE NON-BANK BANK More than any other social media platform, [...]
ESA races ahead in space travel with Europe’s first space taxi launch February 9, 2015 Until its Space Shuttle programme was closed down in 2007, the US was the dominant force in the development of space taxis. Operated by Nasa, the 40-metre-long vehicles delivered satellites into space, conducted science experiments in orbit and helped construct the International Space Station. At the time, Europe had created nothing capable of [...]
Britain needs an Elon Musk to revolutionise its creaking internet January 21, 2015 Cheap smartphones, discount clothing stores, budget airlines: capitalism may not be perfect, but it excels at making things once considered luxuries affordable. Rocketry startup SpaceX announced yesterday that it plans to do the same for broadband in the developing world. It’s raised $1bn (£660m) from Google and Fidelity, and plans to fill the sky with [...]
SpaceX lands $1bn investment from Google and Fidelity January 20, 2015 SpaceX, the California-based rocket company, said it received a $1bn investment from Google and Fidelity. Google and Fidelity will together own just under 10 per cent of the company, which gives SpaceX a total valuation of $10bn. SpaceX, which is based by Tesla founder Elon Musk, said it will use the funding for innovation in [...]
Global internet users mapped: Google mulls SpaceX investment to bring developing world online January 20, 2015 Google is considering an investment in Elon Musk’s company SpaceX, as part of a plan to deliver internet by satellite to the developing world and other areas that lack coverage. The deal has not been finalised, but would value SpaceX at around the $10bn (£6.6bn) mark, and would be a significant boost to the aim [...]