Hyperloop One
Transport techUSA
New to Unitard
π Dead / Bankrupt
PeakΒ $1.5 BillionToday
~-100%
from peak
- π¦Became a unicorn2017
- πPeak valuation$1.5 Billion β17
- πBecame a UnitardDec 2023
- πΈLast valuationWiped out
π₯ Raised & burned
$450M
Total raised
$130K/day
Burned Β· 9.5y alive
Funding: PitchBook via Bloomberg
Current status
Shut down 2023; asset sale
The rise & fall
9 moments Β· 2014β2024The key moments, with employee sentiment along the way.
2014
2014
Founded to make the hyperloop real
Shervin Pishevar and Brogan BamBrogan spin Elon Musk's white-paper concept into a venture-backed company in Los Angeles.
Wikipedia
May 2016
May 2016
A sled screams across the Nevada desert
The first public propulsion test hits the sand at speed; the hype goes global.
Reuters
2017
2017
The peak: ~$1.5B and a Virgin rebrand$1.5B
Richard Branson's Virgin invests and lends its name; the tube-transport dream enters the unicorn club at what proves the top.
Bloomberg
Nov 2020
Nov 2020
Two humans actually ride it
A first crewed test in the Nevada desert makes history β but never converts into a commercially viable route.
CNBC
Feb 2022
Feb 2022
Pivot to cargo, half the staff cut
Passengers are out, freight is in; the layoffs begin.
Bloomberg
2022β23
From the inside Β· Glassdoor reviews, 2022β23
Glassdoor reviews chart the unraveling from inside: three CEOs in roughly a year, vendor credit accounts so far in default that engineers' parts orders bounced, a head of engineering fired weeks after his concept was approved β and by mid-2023, a survivor counting about 20 remaining engineers sharing the office with the CEO's dogs.
Dec 2023
Dec 2023
Shuts down β joins the Unitard Club π
After $450M raised and a decade of renderings, the remaining staff are let go and the test track goes quiet.
Bloomberg
2024
2024
The sell-off
Assets are sold and the intellectual property lands with majority owner DP World.
Canary Media
$1.5Bof peak value erased Β· 9 years
π¬ entries paraphrase anonymous, unverified reviews posted publicly on Glassdoor β; dated facts carry their source.
How it happened
Hyperloop One (later Virgin Hyperloop) aimed to build ultra-fast tube-based transport, reaching a ~$1.5B valuation around 2017 backed by major investors. Despite a 2020 passenger test, it failed to secure a commercially viable route, pivoted to cargo, and shed staff.
By mid-2023 a survivor counted about 20 remaining engineers sharing the office with the CEO's dogs; it shut down at the end of 2023, wiping out essentially all value.
Source: Canary Media
Where they went
- Josh Giegelco-founder & last CEOFounder/CEO at Gambit
- Shervin Pishevarco-founder & chairmanNot on record
- Brogan BamBroganco-founder & CTO (left 2016)VP of Customer Operations & Integration, Co-Founder at Ethos Space
Current roles as self-reported on LinkedIn, retrieved 2026-08-19. See our methodology.
