How Elon Musk’s Hyperloop sucked up billions and delivered nothing

A critical retrospective on Elon Musk's 2013 Hyperloop proposal, tracing how it attracted hundreds of millions in investment from startups like Virgin Hyperloop One and Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, only to collapse within a decade due to insurmountable engineering and economic challenges. The piece argues the fundamental concept — pressurized tubes with near-vacuum conditions — has been attempted since the early 19th century and has always failed for the same reasons: extreme energy requirements for depressurization, thermal expansion and seismic challenges, safety risks, and prohibitive economics (fares would need to exceed $1,000 per trip to be viable). The author suggests Musk's open-sourcing of the idea may have been a deliberate or convenient distraction from California's high-speed rail project, which would have competed with Tesla's EV sales.