x-prize

In the race to curb global warming, the aviation industry lags behind as one of the largest polluters. But the U.S. government wants to help rectify that problem by calling on technology experts for green-air solutions.

On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Transportation said that it will finance a new competition designed to spur innovation in renewable fuels and technologies for the aviation industry. To this end, the DOT, along with the Federal Aviation Administration, has granted $500,000 to the nonprofit X Prize Foundation to form a contest that will call on private industry to develop alternative … Read more

I think we're going to have to call WiMax dead. After all, the CEO of a WiMax network said it's a "disaster." Ouch. In other news, Sony decided it's not cool to charge $50 to get rid of something you never wanted to begin with, Comcast maybe does and maybe doesn't want to put a camera in your set-top box, and Tom's gonna win himself an X Prize. Listen now: Download today's podcast

Breaking: Sony won't charge $50 to remove Bloatware http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/03/sony-pay-an-ext.html … Read more

The X Prize Foundation, best known for sponsoring space travel competitions, on Thursday offered $10 million to make a super-efficient car.

At the New York International Auto Show, the foundation and sponsor Progressive Casualty Insurance announced the newly named Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize. The competition, open to both established automakers and unknown engineers, is meant to result in "real cars" that are available for purchase, rather than concept cars.

More than 60 teams have for a signed up for the competition, including Aptera Motors and Tesla Motors, California electric-car manufacturers; Loremo, a German maker of diesel fuel … Read more

Step aside, NASA. The race between private sector teams to capture the $30 million Google Lunar X Prize is under way.

The teams, some of which have divulged details about their plans this week, are required to land a privately-funded robotic spacecraft on the lunar surface, explore the nearby area, and transmit results of the exploration back to Earth. The grand prize is $20 million, with a second prize of $5 million and bonuses of $5 million.

One announcement came on Thursday from a group called Odyssey Moon, which said at an event in San Jose, Calif., that it was … Read more

The X Prize Foundation and Google are looking to whiz kids for robot ideas.

Three weeks ago, the L.A.-based prize organization announced the Google Lunar X Prize--a $20 million-plus contest to put a robot on the moon that can rove for at least 500 meters and send visuals back to Earth. As if to add heft to the unveiling, Google and X Prize executives talked about the mission and the future of space exploration while surrounded by throngs of school-aged kids from around Los Angeles.

Now, the people behind the Google Lunar X Prize are calling on middle-school … Read more