Chinese electric car maker Xpeng revealed that it is making a flying car model and displaying a prototype of this car at the Beijing Auto Show - the largest international event held by the industry since the pandemic began.
RT reported that in the opening program on September 26, China's opponent of US electric car maker Tesla said it wanted to invest in flying car technology. According to Chinese CEO He Xiaopeng, the automaker is financing the flying startup Xpeng Heitech, in which he owns a majority stake.
The startup behind the development of the car flying at extremely low altitudes like a drone, is named Kiwigogo.
Equipped with eight turbofan turbocharged steam engines, the car can carry two passengers at an altitude of 5 meters to 25 meters, according to Xpeng. Heitech said it has received 15 intellectual property patents within seven years.
However, the flying car is still in development and it is unclear when it will be available on the market. Other automakers such as Toyota and Geely - owner of Volvo - are also researching similar technology, while General Motors is said to be looking into the flying taxi market.
The Chinese-based electric vehicle maker did not specify how much it will spend on technology development, but said it wanted to assess the prospects of flying space before expanding investment.
Xpeng has acquired huge research and development funds after successfully holding a IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, helping the company raise about $1.5 billion.
Previously, at the end of August, Japan's SkyDrive Inc. successfully conducted a flight test despite carrying only 1 person.
