Uber and NASA to build flying taxi air control software

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Uber said on Wednesday that it has struck a deal with NASA to develop software for managing “flying taxi” that will work much like ride-hailing services it has pioneered on the ground.

Concept picture of Uber’s flying car project /Uber Photo

Uber said it is the first formal services contract by the US National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) that covers low-altitude airspace rather than outer space. NASA has used such contract to develop rockets since the late 1950s.

Chief Product Officer Jeff Holden also said Uber would begin testing four-passenger, 200-mile-per hour flying taxi services across Los Angeles in 2020, its second test market after Dallas/Fort Worth.

NASA contracts Uber to build flying taxi air control software. /Reuters Photo

Holden is set to reveal the company’s latest air taxi plans at Web Summit, an annual Internet conference taking place in Lisbon this week.

Source(s): Reuters