Event Raised $210K For X Prize Foundation
"Avatar" Producer/Director and self-avowed "avid explorer" James
Cameron took flight aboard the Zero-G Experience on Saturday to
raise funds for the X Prize Foundation. Joining Cameron on this
flight were X Prize Foundation Trustee Jim Gianopulos, Chairman and
CEO, Fox Filmed Entertainment, along with Tim Ferriss, Author, "The
4-Hour Workweek", Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman and CEO, X Prize
Foundation, and X Prize Foundation Board Members Elon Musk,
Chairman and CEO of SpaceX, and Rob McEwen, Chairman and CEO of US
Gold.
(L-R) McEwen, Cameron, Diamandis, Musk, Gianopulos
Photo Credit Bryan Rapoza
This special flight assembled a group of 30 individuals who are
passionate about the science and technology represented in AVATAR
and mission and innovation of the X Prize Foundation. Three spots
were reserved for the winners of an eBay auction, in which the
general public went head-to-head in a bidding war to snag a coveted
seat aboard the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. An additional 20
seats were sold for $15,000 each. The weightless experience took
place aboard G-Force ONE, a specially modified, FAA-approved,
Boeing 727-200 aircraft which departed from Van Nuys Airport. The
flight, identical to those used by NASA to train its astronauts,
provided guests the chance to fly like Superman and flip like an
Olympic gymnast, as Zero-G creates Martian (1/3-gravity), Lunar
(1/6-gravity) and zero gravity conditions over the course of 15
parabolic arcs.
"Entrepreneurs and innovators are creating technologies which
are making spaceflight affordable…whether it is flying
aboard a Zero-G flight, a sub-orbital flight into space, or a
private flight to orbit. On Saturday's weightless flight we
gathered six X Prize Trustees and 20 philanthropists who believe we
can use incentive prizes to drive radical breakthroughs for
humanity," said Dr. Diamandis, who founded both the X Prize
Foundation and Zero-G. "The funds raised during this flight will
help us design and launch audacious future X Prizes which will help
humanity expand beyond the bounds of Earth."
The auction raised a total of $210,000 with all proceeds
benefiting the X Prize Foundation - an educational, non-profit
organization that spurs innovation and radical breakthroughs
through incentivized competition. The Foundation focuses on four
different areas: Life Sciences; Energy and the Environment;
Education and Global Development; and Exploration (Space and
Oceans). Last month, the Foundation awarded the $10 million
Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize, a competition designed to
inspire a new generation of viable, safe and super fuel-efficient
vehicles capable of achieving 100 miles per gallon or the energy
equivalent (MPGe).
"The rapid acceleration of technology is enabling small teams to
conduct exploration that was only possible by national governments.
The X Prize Foundation helps to set and incentivize audacious and
worthy targets," noted Cameron, Advisor on the X Prize Foundation's
Exploration Prize Committee. If AVATAR has created heightened
interest on the importance of caring for our environment, science
exploration and the potential for groundbreaking innovation then we
have succeeded. These goals are in line with the mission of the X
Prize Foundation."