Getting from A to B in 3D

For more than a century cars have been the go to when it comes to urban transport, but a new era is about to get off the ground. In this special edition of the New Atlas newsletter we've gathered together some of the most innovative and exciting 3D commuting ideas to have crossed our desk over the past couple of years. Watch this space - we'll no doubt be hearing a lot more of some of these names. [Aircraft]( [Jaunt’s ROSA gyrodyne: The first eVTOL air taxi that actually looks safe]( [Jaunt Air Mobility's ROSA gyrodyne is the first eVTOL we'd let our mums ride in]( This eVTOL air taxi design looks like a weird helicopter/plane hybrid, but it's the safest of all the eVTOL designs we've ever seen, and it has another killer advantage in that it requires no special certification. Very cool news for 3D commuting. [Read more]( Special Promotion for New Atlas Readers [Take the headaches out of watering your plants with the Dewplanter]( House plants are proven to boost your mood and even improve air quality indoors, and with helpful tools like the Dewplanter, you can take much of the hassle out of maintaining your plants. This best-selling plant-growing gadget is on sale for over 30% off at just $38.99. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Interview: The next steps for Lilium's eVTOL air taxi service]( [Riding on more than US$100 million of funding, Lilium is a leading candidate in the race to the vertical commute]( A fascinating chat with one of the companies at the forefront of the electric VTOL commuting revolution. Lilium is proceeding with flight testing, and says it'll have meaningful air taxi services in operation by 2025. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [The six Skyport designs that could provide the launchpad for Uber's flying taxis]( [The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces]( ​One of the more fanciful aspects of Uber’s flying taxi service is the concept of Skyports, which would be used as a base for electric aircraft to stay charged up and for passengers to hop on and off. Here’s a look at six concepts dreamt up by architects collaborating with Uber on the idea. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Bell refines its air taxi design and adds an all-electric option]( [Bell expects the Nexus 4EX to be capable of flying four to five passengers plus a pilot distances of around 100 km (62 mi) at a time]( After offering a look at its vision for flying taxis at last year's CES, Bell has returned to Las Vegas with what it considers a new and improved version, featuring an all-electric mode for zero-emission travel over urban centers. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Joby Aviation and Toyota team up to make eVTOL air taxis a reality]( [Joby Aviation has finally released photos of its extraordinary tilt-rotor eVTOL air taxi]( Joby Aviation has been beavering away hammering out the designs and flight dynamics of its awesome-looking tilt-rotor eVTOL for more than 10 years. Now, Joby's got half a billion dollars in the bank thanks to a huge investment led by Toyota. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Skai claims its air taxis will cost the same per mile as taking an Uber]( [Expecting to achieve full FAA certification by the end of 2020, Skai says its "point to any point" air taxi service will cost about the same per mile as a standard Uber]( Skai some big waves last month with the launch of its long-range hydrogen-powered eVTOL air taxi prototype. In an interview with New Atlas, Skai's CTO tells us these flying commuters will cost about the same per mile as an Uber ride, and that he expects to be able to land them just about anywhere. [Read more]( [Urban Transport]( [Hyundai unveils new Uber air taxi design]( [Hyundai and Uber team on the S-A1 at CES 2020]( Hyundai has used the grand platform of CES 2020 to unveil its take on the future of urban mobility. At the heart of its plans is its S-A1, an electric flying taxi developed with Uber. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Skai hydrogen-powered eVTOL air taxi boasts enormous 400-mile range]( [Alaka'i Technologies' Skai prototype is already in the process of FAA certification]( A new electric VTOL air taxi company came out of stealth mode today, using a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain that neatly sidesteps the energy density issue that's holding back battery-powered aircraft. Alaka'i Technologies' Skai machine has a range of up to 4 hr/400 mi and a five-passenger capacity. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [Aston Martin's flying taxi concept envisages luxurious inter-city travel]( [Aston Martin is presenting its Volante Vision flying taxi concept at the Farnsborough International Airshow this week]( ​​Aston Martin is the latest transport heavyweight to enter the flying taxi scene. It has actually teamed up with Rolls-Royce on its first vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, which it says was dreamt up with luxury, inter-city travel in mind. ​ [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [EHang flies into Spain to build air taxi test infrastructure]( [Air taxis like this Ehang 216 could soon be flying over the skies of Seville, Spain]( Back in January, China's EHang aced the first flight in the US of its two-seat autonomous air taxi. Now the company has agreed to develop the first Urban Air Mobility pilot program in Seville, Spain. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [NEC demonstrates wobbly multicopter flying car prototype]( [NEC's flying car prototype in caged testing]( Japanese electronics giant NEC has been working with a company called Cartivator to design, build and test VTOL air taxi concepts. Now the two companies have demonstrated a multi-seat manned multicopter, a step toward a flying car future Japan believes will arrive around 2030. [Read more]( [Aircraft]( [​Bizarre Volerian aircraft design replaces jets and props with flapping wings]( [Like a flying set of venetian blinds, Volerian's aircraft designs are built around the idea of oscillating flappy wings sandwiched inside specially shaped ducts]( There are no powered spinning propellers in nature. When evolution has found an advantage to producing thrust in a fluid, it has done it mainly by flapping things back and forth - and a new VTOL aircraft propulsion system aims to do the same with a series of flapping wings mounted in large ducts. [Read more]( You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at [newatlas.com]( (or [gizmag.com]( before August 2016). [Update profile]( | [Unsubscribe]( Copyright New Atlas © 2019