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Elon Musk: The future we're building -- and boring | TED

TED・29 minutes read

Elon Musk discusses his vision for a 3D tunnel network to alleviate traffic congestion in LA, allowing cars to travel at speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour. Musk also discusses the potential for fully autonomous driving in about two years, as well as his ventures in sustainable energy and space exploration.

Insights

  • The Boring Company, led by Elon Musk, is focused on reducing tunneling costs significantly through innovations like smaller tunnel diameters and more efficient tunneling machines to create a 3D tunnel network for high-speed travel, potentially supporting the Hyperloop transportation system.
  • Elon Musk, in his various ventures like Tesla and SpaceX, aims not only for technological advancements like fully autonomous driving and reusable rockets but also envisions a sustainable energy future and becoming a multiplanet species, driven by a dual motivation of benefiting humanity in the long term while creating inspiring innovations.

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Recent questions

  • What is Elon Musk's vision for a 3D tunnel network?

    Elon Musk envisions a 3D tunnel network to alleviate traffic congestion in LA by allowing cars to travel at high speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour.

  • How does Elon Musk plan to reduce tunneling costs?

    Elon Musk plans to reduce tunneling costs significantly by decreasing tunnel diameter and improving tunneling machine efficiency, aiming for costs to be reduced by an order of magnitude.

  • What is the purpose of The Boring Company?

    The Boring Company, Elon Musk's new venture, aims to achieve cost reductions in tunneling technology to make projects like the 3D tunnel network feasible and efficient.

  • What is the potential use of the tunnel network?

    The tunnel network could potentially be used for the Hyperloop transportation system, with the tunneling technology capable of automatically supporting a vacuum for Hyperloop travel.

  • What is the key to autonomous driving success according to Elon Musk?

    Elon Musk believes that the key to autonomous driving success is surpassing human driving safety levels significantly, with Tesla aiming to achieve fully autonomous driving in about two years.

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Summary

00:00

Elon Musk's Vision: 3D Tunnel Network

  • Elon Musk is discussing his vision for a 3D tunnel network to alleviate traffic congestion in LA.
  • The tunnel network will allow cars to travel at speeds of up to 200 kilometers per hour.
  • The cost of tunneling needs to be reduced significantly for the project to be feasible.
  • By reducing tunnel diameter and improving tunneling machine efficiency, costs can be reduced by an order of magnitude.
  • The Boring Company, Elon's new venture, aims to achieve these cost reductions.
  • The tunnel network could potentially be used for the Hyperloop transportation system.
  • The tunneling technology can automatically support a vacuum for Hyperloop travel.
  • There is no limit to the length of tunnels that could be built for the Hyperloop.
  • The Boring Company is currently a small project, with only 2-3% of Elon's time dedicated to it.
  • Shared autonomy in electric cars may lead to increased traffic congestion in the future.

15:22

Tesla's Vision: Autonomous Cars, Solar Roofs, Gigafactory

  • By the end of 2017, Tesla aims to have a car drive from California to New York without any human intervention.
  • Tesla's data collection from its fleet of cars will enable dynamic route changes during autonomous driving.
  • Elon Musk estimates that fully autonomous driving, where a person can sleep during the journey, is about two years away.
  • The key to autonomous driving success is surpassing human driving safety levels significantly.
  • Tesla plans to introduce a shared autonomy fleet where car owners can earn money by letting others use their vehicles.
  • Tesla is developing a heavy-duty, long-range Semi truck that outperforms diesel trucks in power and range.
  • The Tesla Semi truck will offer a unique driving experience due to its electric motor's flat torque RPM curve.
  • Tesla's solar glass roof tiles aim to make solar power affordable and aesthetically pleasing for homes.
  • Musk envisions almost all houses having solar roofs in the next 40-50 years due to the falling cost of solar power.
  • The Gigafactory, capable of producing a hundred gigawatt hours of batteries annually, is crucial to Tesla's vision of a sustainable energy future.

30:26

SpaceX's Reusable Rockets: Musk's Vision for Future

  • Elon Musk discusses SpaceX's achievement of developing reusable rockets, showcasing a booster returning from space at high velocity.
  • Musk mentions successfully reusing rockets eight or nine times, emphasizing the importance of rapid and complete reusability.
  • The new rocket designed by SpaceX is described as visually massive, with four times the thrust of the Saturn V moon rocket.
  • The rocket is capable of carrying a fully loaded 747 into orbit, showcasing its immense power and potential.
  • Musk envisions an Interplanetary Transport System for Mars, aiming for a launch in 8-10 years, with future spacecraft dwarfing the current design.
  • Musk explains the necessity of becoming a multiplanet species, highlighting the importance of inspiring and appealing futures.
  • Musk discusses the dual motivation behind his projects, aiming to work for humanity's long-term good while also creating exciting and inspiring innovations.
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