Economics
Alphabet Says It Shut Down Titan Drone Internet Project
- Company pulls back on plans to beam internet from the sky
- Similar project pursued by Facebook has also faced setback
Titan Aerospace's Solara 50 aircraft.
Photographer: Titan Aerospace/AP PhotoThis article is for subscribers only.
In 2014, Google and Facebook Inc. vied to acquire Titan Aerospace, a maker of high-altitude, solar-powered drones. Google won the bidding, so Facebook purchased its own company, which was building a huge glider called Aquila.
The idea was to beam internet access from the sky to get more people logging on from remote places to access information and probably use both companies’ web services. That soaring vision has come down to Earth with a bump.