Google Scoops Up the Drone Maker Zuckerberg Failed to Win

The Big G wants in on the global internet-beaming solar drone game and it just scored a high-flying advantage.

learn more about Kim Lachance Shandrow

By Kim Lachance Shandrow

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Google just snatched one of the world's top drone startups out of Mark Zuckerberg's clutches.

The Big G has purchased Titan Aerospace, a leading maker of high-altitude solar drone robots, for an undisclosed purchase price, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Moriarty, New Mexico-based Titan Aerospace -- which owns the bragging rights to creating the world's first "atmospheric satellites" -- just happens to be the very same little company that could that Zuckerberg was reportedly in talks to buy for $60 million last month as part of his ambitious plan to beam the internet to everyone. Everyone as in everyone in the world.

Related: MLB in Hot Water for Unauthorized Drone Use at Spring Training

Google's big buy comes just two weeks after Zuckerberg announced Facebook's $20 million acquisition of Ascenta, the Somerset, England-based aerospace startup behind Zephyr, the world's longest soaring sun-powered drone. Ascenta aerospace engineers are tasked with creating a high-altitude solar internet-beaming drone that could theoretically remain in flight for months at a time, and possibly indefinitely.

Titan engineers will reportedly work with Google on its Project Loon initiative, the Mountain View, Calif. web giant's high-altitude balloon entry into the race to bring internet access to rural and remote areas of the world. Team Titan will also share expertise and technology with Google that will allow for the collection of "real-time, high resolution images of the earth, carry other atmospheric sensor and support voice and data services," the Journal also reports.

Finally, Titan may also assist Google with Makani, a project to build a high-altitude airborne wind turbine that would create more cost-efficient energy than traditional wind turbine technologies.

Kim Lachance Shandrow

Former West Coast Editor

Kim Lachance Shandrow is the former West Coast editor at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was a commerce columnist at Los Angeles CityBeat, a news producer at MSNBC and KNBC in Los Angeles and a frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times. She has also written for Government Technology magazine, LA Yoga magazine, the Lowell Sun newspaper, HealthCentral.com, PsychCentral.com and the former U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. C. Everett Coop. Follow her on Twitter at @Lashandrow. You can also follow her on Facebook here

Related Topics

Editor's Pick

Everyone Wants to Get Close to Their Favorite Artist. Here's the Technology Making It a Reality — But Better.
The Highest-Paid, Highest-Profile People in Every Field Know This Communication Strategy
After Early Rejection From Publishers, This Author Self-Published Her Book and Sold More Than 500,000 Copies. Here's How She Did It.
Having Trouble Speaking Up in Meetings? Try This Strategy.
He Names Brands for Amazon, Meta and Forever 21, and Says This Is the Big Blank Space in the Naming Game
Business News

I Live on a Cruise Ship for Half of the Year. Look Inside My 336-Square-Foot Cabin with Wraparound Balcony.

I live on a cruise ship with my husband, who works on it, for six months out of the year. Life at "home" can be tight. Here's what it's really like living on a cruise ship.

Business News

These Are the Most and Least Affordable Places to Retire in The U.S.

The Northeast and West Coast are the least affordable, while areas in the Mountain State region tend to be ideal for retirees on a budget.

Business News

Amtrak Introduces 'Night Owl' Prices With Some Routes As Low As $5

The new discounts apply to some rides between Washington D.C. and New York City.

Business News

The 'Airbnbust' Proves the Wild West Days of Online Vacation Rentals Are Over

Airbnb recently reported that 2022 was its first profitable year ever. But the deluge of new listings foreshadowed an inevitable correction.

Business Ideas

55 Small Business Ideas To Start Right Now

To start one of these home-based businesses, you don't need a lot of funding -- just energy, passion and the drive to succeed.

Business Solutions

Master Coding for Less Than $2 a Course with This Jam-Packed Bundle

Make coding understandable with this beginner-friendly coding bundle, now just $19.99.