Lightning Hybrid Cars

There is no official X Prize seal yet, the only way to confirm that any one is a official X Prize contender is to check the X Prize website. You can access the registered teams and the list of intent contenders, if they are not listed they are a imitation, a fake. Here is the post from the official X Prize Blog;

Accept No (Progressive Automotive X PRIZE) Imitations
Over the past two years, I have been intrigued to see how many automotive groups use the Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE as a validator for their technology. I’m not talking about Letter of Intent Contenders or Registered Teams. I’m referring to teams who we have not even heard of. On more than one occasion, I have had to contact someone who created their own LOI Contender logo and placed it front and center on their website.

Lately, there has been a rash of press about Progressive Automotive X PRIZE competitors who do not exist — at least on our books. Some of these teams have even received funding based on their supposed involvement. The most amusing one showed up this past week. It started out innocently enough.

I noted that someone was selling their 1995 Chrysler LaBaron on eBay using the “X-Prize” name as a selling feature. This group was not involved in the competition in any way, and it seemed from their description that they tried to make the entry goals but couldn’t, so they were selling the vehicle and giving up the idea. Admittedly, their ad was misleading, but who would have thought that it would get picked up by so many bloggers including Wired? The story showed up again this morning and the bidding on the vehicle had already closed.

It’s nice to know that people have such faith in the competition and its competitors. But, because of the respect that is given to our competitors, it is frustrating to have people claim to be involved when they are not. Our competitors work tirelessly on their vehicle technology. They have the courage to step forward and prove to the world that they have created something worth hearing about. That’s just one of the things that the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE is there to do for them.

One day, we’ll have an official Progressive Automotive X PRIZE “Seal of Approval”, until then, check our website for a list of Registered Teams and Letter of Intent Contenders to see who really has a claim to the name.