Hyundai and Uber unveil a flying taxi at CES 2020

Hyundai has partnered up with Uber to offer an Urban shared air mobility solution in the form of a flying Taxi. The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas has been a hotbed for all sorts of ride sharing mobility concepts of the past few years. Hyundai joins the rest of the automotive manufacturer to come out with their vision for the future of transport solutions in Urban areas.

Hyundai has big plans to take on this shared mobility sector and set trends for the sectors. They have combined with Uber who have been pioneers in this space, and are looking for new ways to move people around in urban areas. Both Hyundai and Uber released the Urban Air Taxi that is set to carry people across cities and cut down commute times drastically. This Hyundai S-A1 concept is will be ready by 2029-2030 will be able to carry 4 passengers along with a pilot. Hyundai showcased a full quad-rotor concept that has a tilt-rotor function that allows it to have the ability to carry out vertical take off and landings. Hyundai have designed a specific rotor that is aimed to reduce the noise emitted so it can be used in urban areas. Hyundai has also developed that Hub for its Purpose Built Vehicle (PBV) it will offer a host of features for commuters to use during their commute like a restaurant, coffee shop, hotel, or even a clinic and pharmacy. Check out this video below to see the Urban Air Taxi’s proposed use case scenarios.

Hyundai stated they will be in charge of the vehicle development and Uber will take care of all the logistics that is required to get the approval for starting these operations in the cites. Uber hopes to match its Uber Black rates for this service when the plan to launch so that it can be a realistic alternative to traditional modes of transport. Hyundai have also said they plan to position this as an alternative to a traditional Helicopter without all the hassles of one, They can be deployed on the airport shuttle routes as these vehicles can land in city centers. Over the past few years we have seen many such concepts but with a major global manufacturer like Hyundai getting in this segment we will really have to keep an eye out for in terms of new Autonomous technology being developed.