Airloom Energy Bets on a Radical Wind Turbine Redesign

A Wyoming-based startup, Airloom Energy, says it has cracked one of renewable energy’s toughest challenges: cutting the cost of wind power by up to threefold. Its unconventional design — backed by Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures — replaces towering blades with a low-height, spinning string system fitted with vertical airfoils. A utility-scale pilot is slated for 2027.

Innovative, Affordable, and Modular

Instead of 300-foot turbines, Airloom’s setup uses short, vertical blades fixed to a looping cable track, rising only a few dozen feet off the ground. The system’s modular design reduces installation costs, requires far less land, and can be deployed in challenging settings — from urban edges to mountain valleys, remote outposts, or military bases.

Market and Climate Implications

As the U.S. braces for looming electricity shortages and accelerates its decarbonisation drive, innovations like Airloom’s could unlock new pockets of wind potential where conventional turbines face grid limits, zoning restrictions, or local resistance. Lower costs and flexible siting may help push wind adoption deeper into the energy mix.

Can Startups Rewrite the Wind Industry?

Backers argue Airloom’s approach could spark a new wave of American green tech leadership — but only if its reliability and economics prove out at scale. If successful, the design might not just compete with wind farms, but redraw the map of where wind power can go.