# Reinventing Sea Travel with Billy Thalheimer of REGENT

- Show: [Over the Air](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air)
- Published: 2023-01-05
- Length: 42m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent
- Listen: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/over-the-air/episodes/Reinventing-Sea-Travel-with-Billy-Thalheimer-of-REGENT-e2l43ss

## Summary

Billy Thalheimer, Co-Founder and CEO of REGENT, explains how his company is building the 'Sea Glider,' an all-electric flying boat that uses ground effect and hydrofoils to provide high-speed, low-noise regional transport. Thalheimer details the engineering trade-offs regarding battery pack-level specific energy (targeting 230-250 Wh/kg) and why solar PV is not viable for flight. He also discusses the critical role of America's Cup hydrofoil technology in enabling the vehicle's harbor transit and highlights supply chain risks related to lithium availability as a key challenge for scaling production.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=0) Introduction: REGENT and the Sea Glider Concept
- [2:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=138) The Moonshot Philosophy and Company Culture
- [7:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=461) Battery Energy Density and Pack-Level Engineering
- [11:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=701) Target Market: The 30-500 Mile Coastal Gap
- [22:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=1358) Noise Pollution and Propeller Physics
- [31:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=1867) Scaling Challenges: Lithium Supply and User Adoption
- [37:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=2224) Hydrofoil Technology and America's Cup Influence
- [34:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-01-05-reinventing-sea-travel-with-billy-thalheimer-of-regent#t=2076) Future Roadmap and Supplier Shout-outs

## Topics

- [Batteries & low-power design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/batteries-and-low-power)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- REGENT (company)
- Sea Glider (product)
- Viceroy (product)
- Uber (company)
- Airbnb (company)
- Dropbox (company)
- eBay (company)
- Tesla (company)
- Oracle (company)
- America's Cup (other)
- EcoBee (company)
- Alecortec (company)

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## Citing this page

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