Passive Magnetic Levitation will now be the technology that the Hyperloop will use. Passive Magnetic Levitation has been branded as a safer and cheaper alternative to typical magnetic levitation found in maglev trains. In the original plans for the Hyperloop - it used solely vacuums and air levitation which can make it fragile.
Passive magnetic levitation was developed by the late-physicist Richard Post in 2000, uses unpowered loops of wire in the track and permanent magnets in the train-pod to create levitation, thereby saving tons of energy. In contrast - maglev requires many infrastructure upgrades, such as power sources placed at short intervals across tracks making it power-hungry and inefficient. This is what has hampered the development of maglev trains.
Using passive maglev eliminates the need for power systems along the Hyperloop track, which significantly reduces construction costs.
