Want to win $10 million? You can, if you win the Automotive X Prize. What the heck is an Automotive X PRIZE anyway, you say?

An X-Prize is a prize offered by X Prize foundation to challenge innovators from around the world to solve some of the greatest challenges facing the world today. The Automotive X Prize (AXP) was created to solve the problems created by modern motorization below:-

The goals of the Automotive X Prize is to stimulate automotive technology, manufacturing and marketing breakthroughs that:

1. Radically reduce oil consumption and harmful emissions
2. Result in a new generation of super-efficient and desirable mainstream vehicles that people want to buy

Why was the prize created? Because of the following reasons:-

• today’s oil consumption is not sustainable – current use of oil endangers our health, our economy, and the political and social stability of the world.
• 40% of world oil output fuels the automotive industry – and, in the U.S., 65% of oil consumption is in the transportation sector
• automotive emissions contribute significantly to global climate change
• there are no mainstream consumer choices for clean, super-efficient vehicles that meet market needs for price, size, capability, image, safety and performance
• the automotive industry is stalled – legislation, regulation, labor issues, manufacturing costs, legacy costs, franchise laws, obsolete technology, consumer attitudes, and many other factors have combined to block breakthroughs
• innovations in engine efficiency have been “spent” on increased vehicle power, acceleration, and weight, rather than on increased fuel economy
• we believe there is great opportunity for technological change.

The X PRIZE Foundation is the brainchild of Dr. Peter H. Diamandis who strongly believes that focused and talented teams in pursuit of a prize and acclaim can change the world.

The first and most famous X Prize was off course the Ansari X Prize. It goal is to build and launch a spacecraft capable of carrying three people to 100 kilometers above the earth’s surface, twice within two weeks. This prize was won by the team led by Burt Rutan and financier Paul Allen.

In case you don’t think you have the money or the technology to take part in the AXP, many AXP contenders are using off the shelf technology. The challenge for the AXP is to have a vehicle with a 100mpg target and to design a vehicle that emits less than 200g of greenhouse gas per mile. You’ll also have to prove the fuel you use is widely available and acceptable today.

Anyone wants to give the Automotive X Prize challenge a shot?

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