←back to thread

China just approved flying taxis – no pilot needed

(engineerine.com)
78 points JumpCrisscross | 1 comments | 12 Apr 25 18:22 UTC | HN request time: 0.299s | source
Show context
_kava ◴[12 Apr 25 19:01 UTC] No.43667054[source]▶
It is both amazing and sad to see China is literally in the future compared to the US in terms of infrastructure and social development.

A trip to one of the major cities in China made it clear to me that they are ahead of the world right now. The amount of tech and the level of integration are unbelievable. In comparasion, the streets of SF, one of the crown jewels of the US technosphere, are just so "normal" I find it hard to believe.

It is the same feeling I had decades ago walking into a then-modern metropolis in the US for the first time. All the cool tech, the convenience, the upscale atmosphere, the extravagance of it all were striking. I have not felt that again for a while and I just think it can't happen again with what I am already used to now. Incredible that China managed to evoke that sense of awe in me again.

replies(10): >>43667123 #>>43667191 #>>43667293 #>>43667364 #>>43667539 #>>43671744 #>>43672009 #>>43672807 #>>43673086 #>>43674497 #
1. slightwinder ◴[13 Apr 25 14:32 UTC] No.43673086[source]▶
> It is both amazing and sad to see China is literally in the future compared to the US in terms of infrastructure and social development.

To be fair, it's usually easier to build state of the art, when you start from scratch. Western countries have a big legacy they build decades ago, which has to be used and maintained for decades to justify the investment.

And as a visitor, it's also more likely to only see the fancy parts, and not be confronted with the dark parts, especially when you have a strong leader who's dedicated goal is to sell a positive view of the country.