X, the moonshot factory

“Taara’s technology could trigger the same kind of transformation that we saw when data storage moved from tape drives to disk drives to our current solid-state devices.” - Astro Teller X’s Captain of Moonshots spoke with WIRED’s Editor-At-Large Steven Levy about Taara’s new silicon photonic chip and what it could mean for the future of connectivity. Learn more about the technology and team’s journey on the X blog: https://lnkd.in/gWmzwgBb

“Since then, I made it my life's mission to find ways to bring people like me online.” Mahesh Krishnaswamy, founder of Taara, spoke with WIRED’s Editor-At-Large, Steven Levy, about his passion for connectivity and his team’s groundbreaking new technology: the Taara Chip. Learn more about what Taara’s silicon photonic chip could signal for the future of connectivity and beyond: https://lnkd.in/ga6ir3Jy

🎧 Introducing the Moonshot Podcast! 🎧 To celebrate 15 years of moonshot taking we’re taking you inside the moonshot factory – giving you unprecedented access to the messy, exhilarating journey of turning science fiction into reality. Meet the inventors and creators who are inspired to tackle the near impossible. Hear the backstory about the origins of self-driving cars, drone delivery, wildfire prediction, and so much more. Listen to The Moonshot Podcast, from March 10, wherever you get your podcasts. https://lnkd.in/gdM5bK65

“Technology is not only a tool that takes people online. It opens up spaces for people to feel a sense of belonging, and a sense of finding opportunities that are currently hidden from them.” - Alphonce Odhiambo of Tanda Community Network The community of Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya, struggles with reliable essential services such as health care, education, and internet access. In recent years, residents have established several community networks—telecom infrastructures that are built, owned, and operated by the communities themselves—in an effort to bring connectivity to the area. The team at Taara, X’s moonshot for connectivity, is partnering with community networks in the region in order to provide abundant, fast, reliable internet access using beams of light. As a result, the day-to-day lives of Kibera’s students, entrepreneurs, and residents are transforming for the better. Here’s how: https://lnkd.in/grNJ8tG6

Brimming with excitement and awe to share the stage with so many revered experts in the Climate & Sustainability track at this year’s SXSW - including the environmental heroes on my panel: Eric C. Olsson, Rey Banatao, Serge Dedina, Ph.D. For a front lines look into the boots-on-the-ground and radical tech solutions driving REAL change in our plastic (and microplastic) crisis, please join us! Event details: https://lnkd.in/gXAPcw-A Thank you Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and SXSW for allowing us the opportunity to share positive answers slated to hold keystone roles in moving forward to a more just world, for all 🌎 #sxsw #climate #ecobabe cc: WILDCOAST, TOMRA Recycling, X, the moonshot factory

The Taara team has been developing wireless optical communication technology that uses beams of light to bring fast, affordable, and abundant connectivity to people everywhere. Through their work on the ground, the team found that developing and deploying new technology is only one part of a much-needed solution. Bridging the digital divide requires adapting to the needs of each individual community, too. In partnership with communities across Ghana and Kenya, the team created Taara Share, a new approach to distributing broadband that empowers local entrepreneurs to resell internet access to their neighbors in small batches: https://lnkd.in/grNJ8tG6

“This wasn’t the business model we had imagined—but we knew there was something magical happening here.” The team at Taara, X’s moonshot for connectivity, is bringing abundant, affordable, reliable internet access to under-connected communities around the world using beams of light. One of the challenges the team has worked to overcome is the high cost of service for people living in underserved areas. For the last few years Taara has been collaborating with community and business leaders in Kenya and Ghana to bring down broadband costs by empowering local entrepreneurs to resell Taara connectivity to their neighbors in small batches. Now, people who previously couldn’t access the internet can afford it and it's unlocking better-quality education, economic opportunities, and more. Read more about Taara’s work in Africa: https://lnkd.in/grNJ8tG6

"It's all about the non-stupid suspension of disbelief—have the audacity to dream big, but the humility to start small."  - Astro Teller, X Captain of Moonshots. Catch Astro’s full interview from the DLD Conference below 👇

X spinout Skip recently published findings in Nature Magazine that show AI and lightweight robotics could help millions of people with early mobility challenges.  According to the CDC, 1 in 4 adults aged over 45 face serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs, and reduced mobility often marks the beginning of a person’s decline in physical health and broader quality of life. Six years ago, a team of researchers, scientists, and technologists set out to work on a moonshot for mobility to address this challenge. Read more about how the team at X and researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology used machine learning to create a next-generation “wearable robot” that can adapt to the unpredictable fluidity of human movement: https://lnkd.in/gspnFUB6

X’s most recent spinout, Heritable Agriculture, is using artificial intelligence to decode natural adaptations in plants. Their goal is to breed crops with climate-friendly traits like higher yields, lower water requirements, and higher carbon storage capacity in roots and soil.    Learn more about Heritable and their journey at the moonshot factory: https://lnkd.in/geBUqzuR