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Halo Space Capsule Set To Fly 32 Km Above Saudi Arabia

A June test flight will launch a second life-size prototype as the company reveals plans to begin commercial “Space Tourism” operations by 2026.

Published

2 years ago

March 25, 2024

Nour Nasir

Halo Space

Spanish headquartered Halo Space, a “Stratospheric Commercial Flights Company” has announced plans to launch a sixth test flight from Saudi Arabian airspace in June this year. The news comes after the company received the go ahead from Saudi Arabia’s Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST).

This test flight will launch Halo’s prototype capsule 32 kilometers above the Earth’s surface. The craft is followed by a helium balloon that slowly ascends and lands back on Earth during the 4-6 hour journey.

Halo plans to begin commercial tourist flights by 2026 at prices of $164,000 per ticket. The company has ambitious plans to help 10,000 people into space this decade, allowing them to view what is known as the Overview Effect — a blue halo that forms around the curvature of the Earth.

Space tourists will eventually be treated to unrivaled 360º vistas for around 1-2 hours at maximum altitude, with the capsule’s windows being significantly larger than those of a commercial airliner.

“I’ve spoken with several astronauts about the feeling of profound transformation when you view the Overview Effect. Everyone should get the chance to see our home from such a view,” says HALO Space CEO Carlos Mira.

Also Read: Pioneering 3D-Printed Mosque Unveiled In Jeddah

Halo is also working with space authorities from the US, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Spain to establish further launch sites. The exact locations have been chosen based on meteorology, territory, and airspace safety.

“It is magnificent to see our vision of making space flight more accessible come to life,” added Carlos Mira. “To prove our concept and showcase all systems working together will signal to the world that near space tourism with Halo Space is ready for lift-off”.

Related Topics:Halo Space Saudi Arabia Space

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At I/O 2026, Sundar Pichai Concedes AI Must Deliver Real Value

Gemini 3.5, a personal agent called Spark, agentic shopping, and Android XR eyewear are all aimed at making AI feel useful, not just impressive.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 20, 2026

Nour Nasir

at io 2026 sundar pichai concedes ai must deliver real value

Google

Google’s annual I/O developer conference (I/O 2026) has recently become a status update on the same question: can the company turn its AI spending into products people use every day? This year, chief executive Sundar Pichai described Google as being in a phase of hyper progress, while conceding this is the part of the cycle where people want to see real value in the products they use on a day-to-day basis.

The strategy on display was to push agents — AI systems that act on a user’s behalf — into nearly every Google product at once. Search now has an “intelligent search box” that returns generated explainer videos alongside links. Gmail, Docs, YouTube and Maps are gaining their own agent layers, including a Docs Live feature that turns spoken instructions into drafted text with citations.

Two new models, Gemini 3.5 and a cheaper Gemini 3.5 Flash, arrived the same day. Google says 900 million people now use Gemini, and that more than 50 billion images have been generated with it. The pricing tier names are likely to confuse buyers: a new AI Ultra plan launches at $100 a month, while the older Gemini AI Ultra drops from $250 to $200.

The flashier announcements were Gemini Omni, a video generator pitched as a more realistic answer to OpenAI’s discontinued Sora 2, and Gemini Spark, a personal agent that handles recurring tasks across a user’s Google account. A new universal shopping cart lets agents complete purchases across multiple retailers from inside Google itself, placing the company between the merchant and the buyer, and also owning the checkout.

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Google also confirmed its Android XR eyewear, built with Samsung and frames from Warby Parker and Gentle Monster. Audio-only glasses ship this autumn; a display-equipped version, which would superimpose live translations into the wearer’s field of view, is still in development. Both sets translate, however only the display version shows you the result.

What Pichai did not resolve is the bargain underneath all this. An agent is only useful to the degree it knows your calendar, your inbox, your shopping history and your physical surroundings. Google has now confirmed that, in time, the same context may carry advertising.