A Houston entrepreneur and investor is bullish on bringing flying motorcycles to existence. Courtesy of Aviator Cycles

When it comes to flying cars, Jeff Chimenti wants to give Elon Musk a run for his money — even though Musk, famously, has a lot of that.

But Chimenti is confident that his startup, Aviator Cycles, might be one of the first to get a vehicle off the ground and up into consumer markets. That's because he's not focusing on cars at all — the prototype, unveiled at a recent promotional event in the Woodlands, is a critical propulsion system for what Chimenti calls a personal air vehicle, or PAV.

The PAVs that Aviator Cycles plans to make are more like motorcycles or four-wheelers and intended for recreational use — but the high-tech system could change how other designers make flying vehicles.

"All of this is really happening," says Chimenti, a Houston-based investor and chief visionary officer and co-founder for the startup. "We're pushing it forward."

And, hopefully, upward. Aviator Cycles's first PAV doesn't fly yet, but smaller models have, and Chimenti expects to see a successful launch within one year. The company is making PAVs because there's a lot of red tape around making cars — traffic systems will need to be redrafted.

So for now, the unique propulsion system, which has come a long way since co-founder Jesse Marcel made his first patent on it before the company was even made, is being fastened to the Aerorunner GSX, a sports vehicle that will flutter from about four feet off the ground for safety.

Aviator Cycles plans to start taking reservations for these in the next six months. But Marcel says that his proprietary propulsion system will eventually make its way to other companies and vehicles; Audi, Porsche and Boeing, for example, have announced flying car projects in recent years.

All this innovation is part of a push toward alternative transportation, but it feels like a resurgent space race — just a little lower this time. Aviator Cycles, based in Spokane, Washington, isn't the only manufacturer. In 2018, California-based Hoversurf announced a hoverbike with a set of helicopter blades. It was supposed to ship out earlier this year for $150,000. Across the world — in Britain and Israel, for example — companies are developing bikes to compete in a brand-new flying vehicle market.

"Everybody that designs is great, but they're ultimately going to have to use our propulsion system," says Chimenti.

A new kind of 4x4 might fly, literally, in the Pacific Northwest, where the culture is all hiking and being outside. Texans, though, tend to have a better relationship with their air-conditioners than the great outdoors. Houston, especially, is mostly the urban sprawl of twisting highways — the same unregulatable stretch of concrete that Chimenti has avoided making vehicles for.

But Chimenti is optimistic about the potential for Space City. Last October, the Houston City Council gave $18.8 million to develop the Houston Spaceport, a kind of "mission control" for the future of commercial alternative transportation. Near Ellington Airport, the site has launch pads and lab space — but, maybe most excitingly for people like Chimenti, it has a tech incubator for developers to design and test their equipment.

Houston, then, has a historical stake in how we explore the space above our heads — and what's left for the regular person to explore is closer, below the stratosphere. If Houston has already been instrumental in getting all the way up there, then some light hovering will be nothing. When it comes to flying motocross, Chimenti says, Houston won't have a problem.

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California company to launch Walmart drone delivery in Houston

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California-based Wing will soon touch down in Houston.

The drone delivery company has partnered with Walmart Supercenters in Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Orlando and Tampa. According to a news release, Wing’s drone delivery services will be available at 100 Walmart stores across the selected markets by this time next year.

Wing also plans to expand to additional Walmart stores in Dallas-Fort Worth, where Wing and Walmart already serve customers from 18 Walmart Supercenters. Wing reports that it has completed thousands of deliveries from DFW-area Walmarts with an average fulfillment time of under 19 minutes. Wing and Walmart launched their first location in the Dallas area in the fall of 2023.

"The popularity of drone delivery in DFW is a testament not just to its convenience, but to the way this technology quickly becomes a part of everyday life,” Wing CEO Adam Woodworth said in the news release. “Walmart has been a strong partner that shares our commitment to innovation and is equally eager to bring this new type of service to many more households.”

Customers in Houston and the other markets in the latest expansion can visit wing.com/walmart to be notified when drone delivery becomes available in their area.

The service works similarly to any other online shopping platform, and users can select the exact location for the drone to drop off their package. Items are packaged in a specialized box that a Wing drone retrieves from Walmart. The drones cruise up to 65 mph and drop off the package outside a shopper's home.

“This is real drone delivery at scale,” Woodworth said in the release. “People all around the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex have made drone delivery part of their normal shopping habits over the past year. Now we’re excited to share this ultra-fast delivery experience with millions more people across many more U.S. cities.”

Houston team develops innovative soft skeleton for kids with cerebral palsy

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A team from the NSF University of Houston Building Reliable Advances and Innovation in Neurotechnology (UH BRAIN) Center and TIRR Memorial Hermann has introduced the MyoStep soft exoskeleton for children with cerebral palsy, according to a news release from UH.

The soft skeleton aims to address motor impairments caused by cerebral palsy that impact children’s ability to participate in physical activities, self-care and academics.

“The MyoStep project represents a significant advancement in the field of pediatric mobility aids, particularly for children with cerebral palsy,” Jose Luis Contreras-Vidal, director of UH BRAIN and the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, said in a news release.

The next-generation lightweight, soft exoskeleton was funded by the IEEE Electron Devices Society (EDS) Award.

The MyoStep is made to be lightweight and discreetly fit under clothes. It includes a wireless sensor network embedded inside the smart and flexible fabrics that is the backbone of the suit and collects and sends real-time data about the user’s movements It also includes safety features with temperature monitoring and emergency shut-off mechanisms.

“By integrating cutting-edge technologies such as artificial muscles, smart fabrics, and a comprehensive sensor network, MyoStep offers a promising solution to the challenges faced by existing exoskeletons,” Contreras-Vidal said in a news release.

Cerebral palsy is a neurological disorder that impacts motor skills. It occurs in one to four out of every 1,000 births worldwide.

“What makes the MyoStep project so compelling is that it’s not just about the technology: it’s about restoring confidence, function, and hope,” Dr. Gerard Francisco, a clinical partner on the technology, The Wulfe Family Chair of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at UTHealth Houston and medical officer at TIRR Memorial Hermann, said in a news release. “This kind of innovation has the potential to dramatically improve quality of life, helping children move through the world with greater ease and dignity.”