Some argued the system would be pricier and require more energy than Musk had calculated, making the Hyperloop impractically expensive. Plus, California has already invested years and millions of dollars in a stalled attempt to build a normal high-speed train line for the same journey.

The Hyperloop, once envisioned as a revolutionary vacuum-tube transportation system, has largely stalled or been "abandoned" in its original commercial form due to immense engineering, financial, and regulatory hurdles. While the physics of a pod traveling at Mach 1 in a near-vacuum tube are sound, the practical application proved prohibitively expensive, with projected costs reaching nearly $100 million per mile. Maintaining a vacuum across hundreds of miles of tubing is an incredible vacuum-sealing challenge, especially with thermal expansion and contraction of the steel. Additionally, securing land rights for perfectly straight tracks—essential for passenger comfort at such high speeds—turned out to be a political nightmare. Many major players, including Virgin Hyperloop, shifted their focus from passengers to cargo before eventually shutting down or pivoting entirely. While research continues at universities and through small-scale prototypes in Europe and Asia, the dream of a "fifth mode of transport" has been eclipsed by the more immediate and proven success of high-speed maglev rail, which offers similar speed benefits without the extreme technical complexities of a pressurized vacuum environment.