Earthgrid aims to re-wire the USA using super-cheap tunnel tech

Bay Area startup Earthgrid says it’s developing a plasma boring robot that can dig underground tunnels 100x faster and up to 98% cheaper than existing tech, and it plans to use it to start re-wiring America’s energy, internet and utilities grids. You can do this without touching the rock walls at all, so the equipment can do entire tunnels without stopping if necessary. It can run entirely on electrical power, opening up the possibility of entirely emissions-free drilling, and both Petra and Earthgrid claim it’s much, much faster and cheaper than doing things mechanically – to the point where previously unfeasible projects can become economically viable. Read more >>