Who will spark the next revolution in auto fuel-efficiency? It’s a good bet it will be one of 22 innovators announced this week as registered teams for the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE.
The X PRIZE promises $10 million (U.S.) to the team that can win a stage race with a clean-running, production-capable vehicle that gets more than 100 miles per gallon of gasoline equivalent (42.5 kilometers per liter).
Announced during the Los Angeles Auto Show, the first X PRIZE contenders include two teams whose names are for some reason confidential. The remaining 20 selections include representatives from 10 different U.S. states and five countries.
They include:
Adiabatic (New York);
Aptera (California);
- Avion (Washington);
- BDCOTSRUS (Florida);
- Eddison*2 – Mass Management (Virginia);
- Enermotion (Ontario, Canada);
- Envera (California);
- Kinetic Vehicles (Oregon);
- Kinetix Motors (California);
- MDI/ZPM (Nice, France/New York);
- Millmac (Florida);
- Nelson Tywa Power Corp. (North Carolina);
- Physics Lab of Lake Havasu (Arizona);
- Red Light Racing (Maryland);
- Synergy Innovations Electric Mini (London);
- Tata Motors (India/Coventry, U.K.);
- TTW Italia (Turin, Italy);
- Western Washington University (Washington);
- Wikispeed (Colorado);
- ZAP (California).
Incidentally, there’s still time to enter if you’ve got a super-car design in mind: the deadline isn’t until early 2009.
Once the final round of teams is announced, X PRIZE contenders will compete in a multi-city race in the U.S. in 2009 and 2010. The $10 million, along with ample bragging rights, will be awarded in 2010.