The race to build a car that can also fly is gaining attention. Alef Aeronautics is using new flight videos to draw a clear line between its project and Tesla’s latest Roadster. The move comes as interest grows in vehicles that could one day travel on roads and through the air.
Tesla presented its second-generation Roadster during a live-streamed SpaceX event on Thursday, October 15, 2026. Alef then highlighted its own flying car work through videos shared online. The company showed footage of its vehicle flying above a Tesla Roadster and a Tesla Cybertruck.
The video was titled “Alef flying car flying over Tesla Roadster and Tesla Cybertruck (not AI, real video).” It had gained more than 100,000 views. In the caption, Alef welcomed the Roadster to what it called the flying car race.
The company also said the flight shown in the video marked the 1,000th flight attempt or flight activity by its vehicle. That figure comes from Alef itself and has not been independently confirmed in the available information.
Alef has spent years trying to turn the idea of a road car that can fly into a real product. The company was founded by Dr. Constantine Kisly, Pavel Markin, Oleg Petrov and Jim Dukhovny. Its team began work on the project in 2015. The company name and website were launched in 2022.
Its development has moved through several stages. Alef built a small prototype in 2016. By 2018, it had created a full-size skeleton model. A full-size prototype flew in 2019, marking a key step in the project’s progress.
Alef also sought help from the car design world. In 2021, it hired Swedish designer Hirash Razaghi, who had worked with Bugatti and Jaguar. His role was to help shape the design of a vehicle that could appeal to customers, not only engineers and test teams.
The company has since used video footage to show its progress. One clip places the Alef vehicle above Tesla models. Another video compares footage of the two companies’ vehicles and makes a bold claim about the market.
Alef says there are only two flying cars in the world that meet its definition: a vehicle that can be driven on roads and take off vertically. This is the company’s own description of the market. It does not prove that Tesla’s Roadster can fly, and the available details do not show that Tesla has presented the Roadster as a flying car.
The two projects also face different challenges. Tesla’s Roadster is a high-performance electric sports car. Alef is working on a vehicle designed to combine road travel with flight. The technology needed for that goal brings added questions about safety, testing, rules and everyday use.
Price may also limit early demand. Alef has opened reservations for its planned vehicle. Customers can place a standard reservation for $150 or pay $1,500 to join a priority queue. The company has projected a price of $299,999 for the vehicle.
That price puts the proposed Alef model in a very expensive market. The final cost, delivery schedule and wider availability will depend on the company’s ability to move from testing to production.
Tesla’s Roadster also asks buyers to make a large financial commitment. Its reservation terms call for an immediate refundable payment of $5,000. A further $45,000 is due within 10 days. The reservation is not complete until the required payment is received, and it may be cancelled if the balance is not paid on time. The terms also state that refunds for modifications will not be issued.
For now, the videos offer a glimpse of Alef’s work rather than proof that flying cars are ready for everyday travel. The company still needs to show how its vehicle will meet safety rules and operate at scale. It must also prove that buyers can use it reliably on roads and in the air.
Alef’s latest clips have helped put its project in the spotlight as Tesla returns attention to the Roadster. But the two vehicles are not yet direct rivals in every sense. One is a sports car, while the other is an attempt to bring road travel and flight together. Whether Alef can deliver that promise will depend on its next steps in testing, approval and production.
