New flying car unveiling held in San Mateo

Tech company Alef Aeronautics unveiled its first flying car model to the public at Draper University in San Mateo Wednesday, calling it the potential future of automobile travel.

The Alef “Model A” is touted as being the first car to have vertical takeoff flying and landing ability while being able to drive and park, with its founders saying it was a solution to easing commute times and congestion on roads.

“To the best of my knowledge, there has never in history been anything that is a driveable street car and has a vertical takeoff until now,” Alef CEO Jim Dukhovny said at an Oct. 19 event.

The Model A is 100% electric and has a driving range of 200 miles and a flight range of 110 miles. According to Dukhovny, the car has no exposed propellers, with its distributed electric propulsion system giving it the ability to fly. When flying, the car goes onto its side and flies horizontally.

Alef was founded in 2015 in Santa Clara at a Coupa Cafe in Palo Alto by four co-founders, Dr. Constantine Kisly, Pavel Markin, Oleg Petrov and Dukhovny. The group built the first sub-prototype in 2016 and a full-size one in 2019 that flew. Dukhovny said the car is revolutionary for addressing traffic and environmental issues. He noted roads are not keeping up with a growing population around the globe, requiring new answers.

“The Alef Model is a modern solution for both urban and rural transportation needs in the 21st century because it is the fastest and most convenient transport ever created from the point of origin to the final destination,” Dukhovny said in a press release. “By enabling consumers to choose driving or flying mode, the Alef flying car allows the optimal path depending on road conditions, weather and infrastructure.”

Alef plans to begin deliveries in 2025, with an initial cost of $300,000 because of the handcrafted quality. Alef is working on additional models, including a four-person sedan called Alef Model Z it hopes to showcase in 2030 priced at $35,000. Alef hopes the Model Z will fly 200 miles with a driving range of 400 miles.

Tim Draper, a venture capital investor who was an early investor in Tesla, Ring and Twitter, was the primary early investor in Alef. Draper founded Draper University in 2012 as a for-profit university at the former Benjamin Franklin Hotel in San Mateo, offering entrepreneurship programs to students to develop startup skills. The school was the scene of the unveiling, with Draper speaking and praising the work of the team and prototype. Draper said the company had huge potential, noting he wanted a car like this when he was stuck in traffic in San Mateo on State Route 92 because of an accident.

“This is our future,” Draper said. “We really should be able to fly, and what Jim Dukhovny and his team have done with a very light budget is extraordinary.”

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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