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The hyperloop is a proposed ground-transport system that would use vacuum and magnetic levitation-powered tube trains to facilitate high-speed travel between urban hubs. First suggested by entrepreneur Elon Musk in 2012, the hyperloop would transport passengers and freight in special vehicles capable of traveling at speeds up to more than 700 miles per hour. Unlike a traditional track-based train, the hyperloop is designed to float above its track using magnetic levitation or a cushion of pressurized air. In addition, the tube through which the hyperloop train travels would be depressurized to minimize friction and make the train as efficient as possible. While no full-scale hyperloop has yet been built, a number of companies, including Virgin Hyperloop One and Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT), are working to make hyperloop transportation a reality in the years to come. In the United States, one proposed hyperloop route is planned to link Los Angeles and San Francisco in California, while another is planned to link New York, Baltimore, and Washington, DC.

Elon Musk used his technology skills and business savvy to become a successful US-based serial entrepreneur. His first company, Zip2, which he cofounded with his brother shortly after leaving the graduate physics program at Stanford University, provided online content publishing software for local news organizations and was acquired by Compaq. As a founder and early driving force behind the online payment-processing company PayPal, Musk reaped significant financial rewards from PayPal's initial public offering (IPO) in early 2002—the first successful IPO of a technology company after the US terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. After eBay acquired the post-IPO PayPal later in 2002, Musk then used the significant wealth he had accumulated to cofound, invest in, and become chief executive officer (CEO) of both Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) and Tesla Motors. In these roles, Musk is largely credited with having developed the Falcon 9/Dragon, a commercial successor to the Space Shuttle, and the Tesla Roadster, the first viable electric car of the modern era. Under his direction, Tesla also invested heavily in developing self-driving vehicle technologies. In 2022 Musk made headlines for purchasing social media giant Twitter and initating a number of changes at the company, including renaming it to X in July 2023.