• I can’t wait until this space tourism company launches…
  • This metaverse game has a unique economic model…
  • Yet another brilliant move by Tesla…

Dear Reader,

Time has an incredible way of adding perspective. It allows us to distance ourselves from a subject and more easily see things objectively.

This has been especially true with regards to the pandemic. What we have witnessed is unthinkable.

We stood by and watched as medical “experts” and public health officials literally threw out or ignored extensive scientific research on subject matters directly related to the pandemic. It was as if all prior scientific knowledge was somehow null and void.

It was as if they wanted to press a “RESET” button and start from scratch.

They tried, and now we’re seeing new research being published that reconfirms what we already know. It reconfirms past scientific research.

Just a few days ago, The Lancet, one of the most prestigious medical journals in the world, published some great research on the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 delta variant. The research investigated the differences between both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals.

What I liked about the research is that it analyzed the transmission of the COVID-19 delta variant in a household environment. This is useful because it is a controlled environment where individuals will obviously be in close contact with one another. This is an indoor environment much in the way that a bar, store, or restaurant is.

The research also analyzed the viral loads carried by both vaccinated and unvaccinated people when infected with COVID-19. In order to track the viral loads, daily PCR tests were used for 14–20 days after exposure.

The study included 602 individual contacts amongst 471 confirmed cases in the U.K. between September 13, 2020, and September 15, 2021. This was a year-long trial, and the findings speak for themselves:

Fully vaccinated individuals with breakthrough infections have peak viral load similar to unvaccinated and can efficiently transmit infection in household settings, including to fully vaccinated contacts.

These mRNA vaccines in no way stop the spread of COVID-19. Individuals who are “fully vaccinated” can still catch COVID-19, and when they do, they are equally as infectious and are just as likely to spread COVID-19 as someone who is unvaccinated. Full stop.

And we’ve seen the evidence all over the world. Country by country… with extremely high vaccination rates like Ireland, Singapore, the U.K. Iceland, and so on… and there are record levels of viral outbreaks.

The one positive nugget that I found in the research for these vaccines is that, while vaccinated people carry the same level of viral loads as unvaccinated individuals, the research suggests that those vaccinated have a slightly faster viral decline after reaching peak viral load. That suggests a possible faster recovery, but they are no less infectious than someone who is unvaccinated.

The study also confirmed what has been documented extensively in prior research – mainly, that whatever protection the mRNA vaccines confer, it wanes quickly after two to three months.

The susceptibility to infection increases quickly in the weeks that follow vaccination. Therefore, if someone who is vaccinated doesn’t catch COVID-19 and develops natural immunity, they will need a booster shot. And that is exactly what the pharmaceutical industry is selling to us now.

These scientific facts elucidate a remarkable irony.

An individual who has taken an mRNA vaccine is no safer to society than someone who is unvaccinated. The only person that they have provided protection to is themselves.

And to state the obvious, the safest individuals to society in this pandemic are those who have caught and fully recovered from COVID-19.

In this light, categorizing individuals as “Vaccinated” and “Unvaccinated” as if it amounts to the “Unsullied” and the “Sullied” makes no sense at all.

And it goes without saying that vaccine passports mean absolutely nothing at all. As we have just learned, the “Unsullied” can transmit and infect COVID-19 as well as the “Sullied.”

It is long overdue for the scientific community to step up and acknowledge natural immunity as the safest cohort of the population and immediately discontinue these nonsensical mandates and restrictions.

Space Perspective is gearing up for launch…

Early stage space tourism company Space Perspective just raised $40 million in its Series A venture capital round. And what’s most exciting is that the company said this raise will be enough to get it to its commercial launch in 2024.

As a reminder, Space Perspective is an Orlando-based company that was just founded in 2020. Its vision is to provide luxurious rides into space for up to eight passengers at a time.

To do this, Space Perspective created a pressurized spacecraft that will be carried by a massive stratospheric balloon system. Here’s a visual:

Space Perspective’s Spacecraft

Source: Space Perspective

Here we can see where the company gets its name from. The spacecraft will provide passengers with a magnificent 360-degree view as the balloon rises about 20 miles above the Earth. It will move at a comfortable 12 miles per hour.

And get this – the spacecraft also sports a bar and a restroom. Passengers can hang out with drinks in hand and enjoy the amazing views.

This is a novel approach that compares favorably to what other space tourism companies like Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic are doing.

Unlike short bursts into space on a rocket, Space Perspective will provide passengers with a ride that lasts about six hours with about two hours at the apex of the flight. That’s plenty of time to enjoy the amazing views. In contrast, Blue Origin’s launches last about 11 minutes, with just a few minutes in space.

What’s more, Space Perspective rides will cost about half as much. The company plans to charge $125,000 per seat. That’s compared to about $250,000 for Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic.

So this is going to be a fun project to watch. I think it will be quite a competitive offering.

And now that we are moving into 2022, we are only a little more than two years away from Space Perspective’s first commercial launch. I can’t wait to see it in action.

And who knows, a team from Brownstone Research just might have to experience the ride… all for research purposes, of course.

Yet another NFT-based metaverse is launching…

What issue of The Bleeding Edge would be complete without a discussion of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse? It seems like we are talking about these trends daily now. This market is on fire and experiencing exponential growth right now.

As we discussed yesterday, the metaverse refers to a virtual world in which people can meet and interact with one another. But there won’t be just one. There will be many different metaverses out there.

And an interesting new metaverse is launching right now. It’s called Ertha.

Ertha is another play-to-earn multiplayer game in the same mold as Axie Infinity and Treeverse. That means players will be able to own their own objects and land in Ertha in the form of NFTs. And these NFTs can then be sold for Ethereum (ETH), which can be converted into the player’s national fiat currency.

In this way, players will be able to derive a real income from interacting in the metaverse.

What’s unique about Ertha is that the game is set in a post-apocalyptic version of Earth. The metaverse features all the same geography as the real Earth, except the world is plagued by natural disasters, wars, and crime. It’s a dystopian vision.

Plus, Ertha will support its own political parties, elections, and voting systems. In this way, players will have a direct say in how the metaverse takes shape.

Within this context, players can choose from three core character types. They can choose to be a fighter, a business person, or a scholar. Depending on their choice, players will then go out and try to conquer, acquire, or outsmart their way to fortune and fame.

And Ertha also envisions a unique economic model.

It appears that land will be the primary economic driver in the metaverse. And landowners will be able to generate multiple income streams from the land they own.

These include employment and sales taxes on the economic activity that takes place on their land… company and warehouse fees from business operations and buildings on the land… and even delivery and airfare fees for a given location.

So landowners should be able to earn real income if Ertha becomes a thriving metaverse – just by playing the game.

That said, the land sale is taking place right now. The development team is selling 350,000 plots of land in the form of NFTs as we speak. Land that is considered “less desirable” is going for about $200 per plot. And the more desirable land is selling for about $500 per plot.

So this is another metaverse we will be following closely. Given the immersive realism, I think Ertha will be attractive to a large demographic. That’s a recipe for success.

And if any readers haven’t yet checked out my latest research in this area, I’d highly recommend going right here for more information on how to invest in this space.

Another one of my predictions around Tesla just came true…

Tesla just officially launched its car insurance business. I predicted this day would come several years ago, and I’m excited to see it happen. To me, this is the future of the entire car insurance industry.

Regular readers know that I have long considered Tesla to be one of the most successful artificial intelligence (AI) companies in the world. That’s because all of its cars are connected back to Tesla wirelessly and effectively constitute a massive data collection network. Tesla collects data, not on its customers, but from the car based on every mile that it drives.

We have talked many times about how this data is then used to make Tesla’s self-driving AI better. The AI processes the data and learns from it. It is critical to training the self-driving AI.

What we haven’t talked about before is that this data also gives Tesla insight into each driver’s habits. In other words, the data shows who is a safe driver and who isn’t.

That’s why getting into the car insurance business makes perfect sense for Tesla. It can understand each driver’s risk level and offer insurance rates accordingly.

Just to be clear, this isn’t something that requires human analysis. Nobody at Tesla will crunch the numbers and say, “Mr. Smith is a bad driver.”

Instead, the AI will process the driving data and make risk determinations automatically. No humans necessary.

What’s more, the AI can consider actuarial factors to come up with the optimal insurance rate for each driver. The idea here is twofold.

From the consumer side, safe drivers should pay less for car insurance than risky drivers. We all understand that.

Yet traditional insurance companies have little way of knowing who is safe and who isn’t. So they can’t offer customized rates. This means safe drivers end up subsidizing the risky drivers by paying more than their fair share.

Tesla’s AI-driven model will change that.

And from the company’s perspective, giving each driver the appropriate rate based on their risk level will be a major profit center. Insurance is a fantastic business when it’s done right.

And Tesla’s superior AI will be able to drive even higher gross margins on the insurance while at the same time offering lower rates for its drivers.

So I see this as yet another brilliant move by Tesla.

The company is rolling out its insurance business in Texas first, and I expect it to spread quickly across the U.S. from there. Then it will go global.

The future of insurance is upon us. And it’s no surprise that Tesla is leading the way.

Regards,

Jeff Brown
Editor, The Bleeding Edge

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