Fact Check

Is This a Real Video of a Man Riding a Hoverboard in Traffic?

The depicted technology is far from affordable at this time.

Published May 3, 2021

 (Screencapture / Twitter)
Image Via Screencapture / Twitter
Claim:
A video shows a man riding a drone-powered hoverboard through city traffic.

In April 2021, video of what appeared to be a man riding a hoverboard at night on a street alongside other cars went viral on FacebookTwitter and YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv5JQnmD1Yk
 

Based on the similarity of the device in the viral video to prototypes designed by a company named Omni Hoverboards, Snopes concludes that the video is genuine.

In 2017, for example, an official delivered the game ball in a Portuguese soccer match using an on an Omni Hoverboard:

https://youtu.be/5l5pOa0Yy-0
 
Omni Hoverboard's website also highlights their product's capabilities above a pond in this promotional video:

https://youtu.be/kmUFk3qn8MA
 
The Omni Hoverboard is not yet available to the general public. Alexandru Duru and Philippe Maalouf, the co-founders of Omni Hoverboards, told TMZ that the company is "very close" to bringing their product to market.

"We are told pricing is still a work in progress, but the 10-propellor model is expected to fetch around $36K," TMZ reported, adding that the company is interested in selling "an 8-propellor model that could retail for around $27K."

Because the video shows a device that appears to be an Omni Hoverboard, and because that product is real and capable of performing the feats shown in the video, we conclude the video is authentic.

Alex Kasprak is an investigative journalist and science writer reporting on scientific misinformation, online fraud, and financial crime.

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