Lifeboat Foundation

SpaceX is preparing to make its first demo launches for NASA’s commercial crew mission program, which aims to bring back the capability for U.S. spacecraft to fly astronauts to space.

The rocket company plans to use Tesla Model X vehicles to bring the first astronauts flying in the Crew Dragon spacecraft to the launch pad.

It appears to be the latest example of some synergy between Elon Musk’s two main companies.

Continue reading “Tesla Model X will carry first astronauts flying in SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft to launch pad” »

Tesla’s Semi truck has already made some city-to-city trips, but how does it fare on cross-country jaunts — you know, what it’ll be doing when it enters service? Just fine, if you ask Elon Musk. In response to an Electrek piece on the Semi’s latest visit (to Arkansas trucking behemoth J.B. Hunt), the CEO noted that the Semi has been traveling thousands of miles entirely by itself, using the existing Supercharger network. The only necessary help is an “extension cord” to help the truck plug in. To be exact, it’s a system of cords that plugs into multiple stations at once to top up the Semi’s giant battery before the company’s Megachargers come online.

That solo travel is likely meant in part to reassure customers (including J.B. Hunt) that the Semi is already capable of handling long-distance trips without escorts. However, it does leave a few open questions. How long does it take to top up using Superchargers, and how likely is it that drivers could rely on them when Megachargers aren’t available? While it’s easy for a Tesla-operated truck to cross the US using the existing framework, it’d be another matter with thousands of third-party trucks in service. This is a significant step toward the Semi hitting the road in earnest, but there are many more steps to go.

Continue reading “Tesla’s Semi truck is traveling cross-country ‘alone’” »

Moon? Mars? A trillion over 25 years? Lunar space station? Lunar resources? It’s gonna be interesting to see where this goes. It’s kind of a mess. But a good mess, a driven mess. A mess that is leading to real space exploration.

Space exploration is the latest partisan divide, as the Trump administration backs a moon mission and others, including Elon Musk, push for a trip to Mars. Here’s why it all matters.

An early moment in the new documentary Do You Trust This Computer? is actually a shot from the Terminator franchise. Human skulls and bones rest among dust and ashes as the robotic soldiers of Skynet march through the remains of an apocalyptic war. What happens between humans and robots in the Terminator films, or other sci-fi movies like The Matrix, War Games, and Ex Machina, might feel like the far away future, but Do You Trust This Computer? suggests that that’s not the case. In fact, the doc implies that we’re much closer to sentient robots walking the Earth than we think – only they may not look exactly like we’ve always imagined, and we are woefully unprepared for the consequences of their consciousness.

Directed by Chris Paine, Do You Trust This Computer? (now playing in New York and available on VOD) explores the role of artificial intelligence in our everyday lives. The film features interviews with some of today’s top AI experts, theorists, professors, and scientists, such as Elon Musk, Westworld creator Jonathan Nolan, and futurist Ray Kurtzwiel. While some people — predominantly those on the side of tech and invention companies — think that AI can help better humanity, most of the others interviewed suggest that we’re on the cusp of something potentially world-ending. As such, the doc offers up a vision of the real near-future that is as fascinating as it is terrifying.

So, what exactly do we have to be so afraid of? After all, there’s plenty of potential good that can come from advancements in AI. Self-driving cars could potentially prevent crashes and save millions of lives around the world; robotics in the medical field can find ailments faster; surgical machines can go where human hands cannot. But automation can also lead to major job loss, the film suggests. Much like the industrial revolution put many humans out of work, so too will robotics. Just take Baxter, an industrial robot, who costs the same amount as one minimum wage worker would in a year, but lasts much longer and can do the work of three people, since he doesn’t need to eat, sleep, or take breaks. Everyone from long-haul drivers and taxi drivers to data entry workers to those in white-collar industries like business, journalism, and medicine will be affected.

Continue reading “This New Tech Documentary Says We’re Totally Unprepared For The Upcoming Robot Apocalypse” »

Billionaires have the money to make things happen. The ultra rich individuals on this list for the most part have two main subjects on their mind: space travel and immortality. Almost all the ideas appear to be for the benefit of mankind.

If you had a spare US$1 billion or US$100 billion, what would you spend your money on? These men could have anything in the world, but they want more as they push the boundaries of health, science and infrastructure.

“The countries which have the capacity to bring that source from the moon to Earth will dictate the process,” said K Sivan, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). “I don’t want to be just a part of them, I want to lead them.”

The mission would solidify India’s place among the fleet of explorers racing to the moon, Mars and beyond for scientific, commercial or military gains. The governments of the US, China, India, Japan and Russia are competing with startups and billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson to launch satellites, robotic landers, astronauts and tourists into the cosmos.

The rover landing is one step in an envisioned series for ISRO that includes putting a space station in orbit and, potentially, an Indian crew on the moon. The government has yet to set a timeframe.

Continue reading “India’s quest to find a trillion-dollar nuclear fuel on the Moon” »

While Elon Musk owns 20% of Tesla, more than $60 billion would be needed to buy the business from public shareholders.

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is in talks that could see it becoming a significant investor in Tesla as part of Elon Musk’s plan to take the electric car maker private, according to a person with direct knowledge of the fund’s plans.

The Public Investment Fund, which has built up a stake just shy of 5 percent in Tesla in recent months, is exploring how it can be involved in the potential deal, the person said on condition of anonymity. Discussions began before the controversial Aug. 7 tweet by Musk, who is Tesla’s co-founder and chief executive officer, saying he was weighing a plan to take the company private.

The fascinating space adventures of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are essential viewing for anyone seeking to understand the future of business and industry here on Earth.

Rockets and space are increasingly important to Africa, where more countries have been partnering to launch or are launching their own satellites. Still, discussions here remain more prosaic than determining how soon we’ll be colonizing Mars or sending industrial operations to the moon.

The satellites launched by the likes of SpaceX are smaller than ever before. Powerful nano-satellites, the size of soccer balls, are able to deliver detailed imagery and information about a chosen territory from space. These advances in technology and cheaper launch vehicles mean more developing countries can use satellites to collect troves of valuable data.

Continue reading “African space programs will boost development with satellite data” »

Look up into the night sky towards the end of October and you may catch sight of a brand new ‘star’ twinkling in the cosmos.

The tiny speck of light is not the offspring of a seething nebula, but the world’s first space sculpture, which will orbit the Earth for three weeks this autumn.

The length of a football field, and the shape of an elongated diamond, the ‘Orbital Reflector’ artwork is the brainchild of US artist Trevor Paglen and will be launched on board on one of Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets.

Continue reading “Heavens to shine with new ‘star’ as first space sculpture prepares for launch” »