Google (now Alphabet) bought Titan Aerospace, a company specialising in solar-powered drones that could fly at high altitudes back in 2014 with the goal to offer internet access to rural areas that lacked connectivity – much like Facebook’s Aquila. However, the company recently confirmed to Business Insider, stating that they had ended the exploration of solar-powered drones.
“Google's "moonshot" X division is ending its Titan drone program, which planned to use solar-powered drones to beam internet down to earth,” the report read. A spokesperson said that the project ended almost a year ago.
However, the company hasn’t completely given up on the idea of high-altitude internet.
"The team from Titan was brought into X in late 2015. We ended our exploration of high altitude UAVs for internet access shortly after," the X spokesperson said in a written statement as reported by The Verge. "By comparison, at this stage the economics and technical feasibility of Project Loon present a much more promising way to connect rural and remote parts of the world. Many people from the Titan team are now using their expertise as part of other high flying projects at X, including Loon and Project Wing."
