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Alphabet dropped its plan for solar-powered internet drones
Wondering what happened to Google's solar internet drone project? Unfortunately, we don't have good news. An Alphabet spokesperson has confirmed to 9to5Google that its X division quietly dropped the Titan project shortly after it folded into X in late 2015. It won't surprise you as to why: Project Loon's high-altitude balloons are a "much more promising" way of getting people online in remote locations, the company says. Staffers who were working on Titan have found their way into other "high flying" initiatives, such as Project Loon and Project Wing. You can read the full statement below.
Google's solar plane crashed due to wing failure
Last year, the National Transportation Safety Board revealed that one of Google's solar-powered planes, designed to deliver free internet from the skies, crashed in New Mexico shortly after takeoff. But while not many other details were shared back then, the NTSB is now explaining what exactly happened to the aircraft. According to a report released today, the unmanned Solara 50 experienced a sudden change in speed that caused its wing structure to deform, leading to a drastic turn which the operator wasn't able to control.
Google beats Facebook to acquisition of drone maker
Google has just agreed to buy Titan Aerospace, a maker of high-altitude solar-powered drones that was in acquisition talks with Facebook just a few months ago. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Mountain View company hopes to use these long-lasting autonomous vehicles to assist its Project Loon project, which aims to broadcast internet signals to parts of the world that can't get online. Facebook, on the other hand, went ahead with another drone company called Ascenta for Internet.org, its own worldwide internet initiative. Google has uses for Titan beyond just Project Loon, however. The drones could also be useful for Makani, a Google project to build an energy-efficient airborne wind turbine. As the unmanned planes are also able to collect high-res images of earth and support voice and data services, they could also be of use in other Google divisions, such as Maps. While all Titan employees are now a part of Google, they'll remain in New Mexico for the time being. The terms of the purchase have not been disclosed.
Facebook in talks to buy drone company, could battle Google's internet balloons
Facebook is in discussions to purchase Titan Aerospace, a company that makes solar-powered drones that can apparently stay up in the skies for up to five years at a time. According to TechCrunch's sources, Facebook wants solar-powered drones to deliver sky-based internet access, with a view to building 11,000 UAVs to deliver data services, at least initially, in Africa. The drone company has confirmed that there are discussions with Facebook, The plan would certainly chime with the social network's Internet.org efforts to expand online access in developing countries. Of course, Google is also trialling internet access from the sky, although it's using balloons, with Project Loon offering 50 testers internet access via solar-powered helium balloons. Its experiments are currently centered on the southern hemisphere, namely New Zealand. The purchase will reportedly cost Facebook $60 million -- still, a whole lot cheaper than a messaging app.
