Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Paris, Champs-Elysées, June 14 2026
Among the countless innovations showcased on the Champs-Élysées during VivaTech 2026, few projects captured attention quite like Climate Impulse, the ambitious hydrogen-powered aircraft championed by Bertrand Piccard. Presented within the event’s Impact & Planète zone, the aircraft stood as a powerful symbol of how technological innovation can address some of the biggest environmental challenges facing the world today. While visitors discovered robotics, artificial intelligence, mobility solutions, and sustainable technologies throughout the avenue, Climate Impulse offered a particularly inspiring vision of the future of aviation.
The project is led by Bertrand Piccard, one of the most famous explorers and innovators of modern times. Coming from an extraordinary family of pioneers, he follows in the footsteps of his grandfather Auguste Piccard, who became the first human to reach the stratosphere by balloon in 1931, and his father Jacques Piccard, who descended to the deepest point of the Mariana Trench in 1960. Throughout his own career, Bertrand Piccard has repeatedly challenged what many considered impossible. In 1999, alongside Brian Jones, he completed the first nonstop balloon flight around the world, while in 2016 he achieved global recognition with Solar Impulse, the solar-powered aircraft developed with André Borschberg that successfully circumnavigated the globe using only solar energy.
Climate Impulse represents the next chapter in that remarkable adventure. The objective is breathtaking in its ambition: completing a nonstop nine-day flight around the world using only green hydrogen as an energy source and producing no carbon emissions during flight. At a time when aviation is under increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact, the project seeks to demonstrate that innovation and sustainability can go hand in hand. Rather than asking society to abandon air travel, Bertrand Piccard wants to prove that cleaner technologies can transform the industry from within.
The aircraft currently under construction in Les Sables-d’Olonne is already an impressive engineering achievement. Roughly sixty percent of the plane has been completed, including major sections of the fuselage, wings, and cockpit. With a wingspan of 34 meters and a structure built primarily from advanced composite materials, every element has been designed to maximize efficiency while minimizing weight and energy consumption. Unlike traditional aircraft, Climate Impulse has been optimized from the ground up to support one of the most demanding sustainable aviation missions ever attempted.
One of the project’s greatest technical challenges involves the storage of liquid hydrogen. The fuel must be maintained at an extraordinary temperature of minus 253 degrees Celsius throughout the entire nine-day flight. Two large cryogenic tanks will store the hydrogen, feeding fuel cells that convert it into electricity to power electric motors and propellers. While hydrogen-powered aircraft have already been demonstrated on a smaller scale, Climate Impulse aims to push the technology further than ever before, proving that long-duration, zero-emission flight could become a reality.
The project benefits from the support of a large network of industrial and technological partners. Among them is Syensqo, the specialty chemicals company that serves as the initiative’s primary technology partner. The collaboration continues a relationship that dates back to the Solar Impulse era, when advanced materials played a key role in enabling solar-powered aviation. Artificial intelligence is also helping accelerate development, particularly through British company Plyable, whose AI-driven manufacturing platform allows engineers to optimize aerodynamic components and significantly reduce production timelines.
Climate Impulse perfectly embodied the spirit of VivaTech 2026, which focused on themes such as sustainability, mobility, artificial intelligence, robotics, health, and future technologies. The aircraft sits at the intersection of many of these sectors, combining clean energy, advanced materials, digital engineering, and environmental responsibility into a single visionary project. Its presence on the Champs-Élysées demonstrated how different technological disciplines are increasingly converging to create solutions for global challenges.
Beyond the engineering achievements, Climate Impulse carries a powerful message. Throughout his career, Bertrand Piccard has argued that environmental progress should be viewed as an opportunity rather than a constraint. Through the Solar Impulse Foundation, he has already helped identify more than a thousand profitable solutions capable of addressing sustainability challenges. Climate Impulse continues that philosophy by showing that ecological responsibility and economic development can work together rather than in opposition.
Paris, Champs-Elysées, June 14 2026
Among the countless innovations showcased on the Champs-Élysées during VivaTech 2026, few projects captured attention quite like Climate Impulse, the ambitious hydrogen-powered aircraft championed by Bertrand Piccard. Presented within the event’s Impact & Planète zone, the aircraft stood as a powerful symbol of how technological innovation can address some of the biggest environmental challenges facing the world today. While visitors discovered robotics, artificial intelligence, mobility solutions, and sustainable technologies throughout the avenue, Climate Impulse offered a particularly inspiring vision of the future of aviation.
The project is led by Bertrand Piccard, one of the most famous explorers and innovators of modern times. Coming from an extraordinary family of pioneers, he follows in the footsteps of his grandfather Auguste Piccard, who became the first human to reach the stratosphere by balloon in 1931, and his father Jacques Piccard, who descended to the deepest point of the Mariana Trench in 1960. Throughout his own career, Bertrand Piccard has repeatedly challenged what many considered impossible. In 1999, alongside Brian Jones, he completed the first nonstop balloon flight around the world, while in 2016 he achieved global recognition with Solar Impulse, the solar-powered aircraft developed with André Borschberg that successfully circumnavigated the globe using only solar energy.
Climate Impulse represents the next chapter in that remarkable adventure. The objective is breathtaking in its ambition: completing a nonstop nine-day flight around the world using only green hydrogen as an energy source and producing no carbon emissions during flight. At a time when aviation is under increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact, the project seeks to demonstrate that innovation and sustainability can go hand in hand. Rather than asking society to abandon air travel, Bertrand Piccard wants to prove that cleaner technologies can transform the industry from within.
The aircraft currently under construction in Les Sables-d’Olonne is already an impressive engineering achievement. Roughly sixty percent of the plane has been completed, including major sections of the fuselage, wings, and cockpit. With a wingspan of 34 meters and a structure built primarily from advanced composite materials, every element has been designed to maximize efficiency while minimizing weight and energy consumption. Unlike traditional aircraft, Climate Impulse has been optimized from the ground up to support one of the most demanding sustainable aviation missions ever attempted.
One of the project’s greatest technical challenges involves the storage of liquid hydrogen. The fuel must be maintained at an extraordinary temperature of minus 253 degrees Celsius throughout the entire nine-day flight. Two large cryogenic tanks will store the hydrogen, feeding fuel cells that convert it into electricity to power electric motors and propellers. While hydrogen-powered aircraft have already been demonstrated on a smaller scale, Climate Impulse aims to push the technology further than ever before, proving that long-duration, zero-emission flight could become a reality.
The project benefits from the support of a large network of industrial and technological partners. Among them is Syensqo, the specialty chemicals company that serves as the initiative’s primary technology partner. The collaboration continues a relationship that dates back to the Solar Impulse era, when advanced materials played a key role in enabling solar-powered aviation. Artificial intelligence is also helping accelerate development, particularly through British company Plyable, whose AI-driven manufacturing platform allows engineers to optimize aerodynamic components and significantly reduce production timelines.
Climate Impulse perfectly embodied the spirit of VivaTech 2026, which focused on themes such as sustainability, mobility, artificial intelligence, robotics, health, and future technologies. The aircraft sits at the intersection of many of these sectors, combining clean energy, advanced materials, digital engineering, and environmental responsibility into a single visionary project. Its presence on the Champs-Élysées demonstrated how different technological disciplines are increasingly converging to create solutions for global challenges.
Beyond the engineering achievements, Climate Impulse carries a powerful message. Throughout his career, Bertrand Piccard has argued that environmental progress should be viewed as an opportunity rather than a constraint. Through the Solar Impulse Foundation, he has already helped identify more than a thousand profitable solutions capable of addressing sustainability challenges. Climate Impulse continues that philosophy by showing that ecological responsibility and economic development can work together rather than in opposition.
