congress and american innovation
Private-public partnerships are key to advancing America’s hypersonic future and radically accelerating air travel.
June 1, 2022
As a venture-backed startup working on hypersonic aircraft for commercial and defense markets, we’re always excited to see Congress lean into efforts to boost American innovation. So we’re thrilled to see that 107 Member of Congress are coming together to finalize the content of a bill that will better position the United States to compete with China. Versions of this bill have passed the Senate and the House, respectively as the United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) and the America Creating Opportunities, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act (COMPETES).
For those interested in how the legislation will advance hypersonic flight, we surveyed nearly 2,400-pages so you don’t have to. Here’s what we found:
The Senate bill and the House bill identify an immediate need to create and develop facilities supporting research in advanced, autonomous, and high-speed aircraft systems.
The Senate bill and the House bill also call out hypersonic technologies “critical to the development of advanced high-speed aerospace vehicles” for both civilian and defense purposes, underscore the importance of public-private collaboration, and encourage the maximal use of commercially available platforms for hosting NASA and Department of Defense research and development flight projects.
Ultimately, building America’s hypersonic future is a team effort – the only way to get there is through a partnership that brings together entrepreneurs, private investors, the executive branch, and Congress. The legislation pending in Congress is a great step in this direction. Toward a faster future!
About Hermeus
Hermeus is a startup developing hypersonic aircraft to radically accelerate air travel. At Mach 5, more than twice the speed of the supersonic Concorde, passengers will be able to cross the Atlantic in 90 minutes. On the path to hypersonic passenger aircraft, Hermeus is partnering with government agencies including the US Air Force and NASA to develop a series of autonomous aircraft that derisk the technology and solve urgent national security challenges. These products provide the data and confidence necessary to certify, produce, operate, and maintain safe and comfortable commercial aircraft. Hypersonic aircraft have the potential to create trillions of dollars of new global economic growth per year, unlocking significant resources that can be utilized to solve the world’s greatest problems.