Google has bought Titan Aerospace, a maker of
solar-powered drones, saying it could help
bring Internet access to remote parts of the
world as well as solve other problems.
Financial terms have not been disclosed.
Google said on Monday that atmospheric
satellites could also be used in disaster relief
and assessing environmental damage.
Titan's atmospheric satellites, which are still in
development and not yet commercially
available, can stay in the air for as long as five
years, according to reports. Before it was
updated Monday to reflect the acquisition,
Titan's website cited a wide range of uses for
the drones, including atmospheric and weather
monitoring, disaster response and voice and
data communications.
Facebook was also in talks to buy New Mexico-
based Titan earlier this year, but it acquired
UK-based solar drone company Ascenta
instead.
Both Google and Facebook have launched
ambitious projects that aim to get everyone on
the planet online. Google's Project Loon sends
giant balloons bearing Internet-beaming
antennas into the stratosphere.
No comments:
Post a Comment