Facebook is going ahead with its mission to connect people across the world by offering global internet connectivity. The company also aims to make virtual reality available to everyone. According to the company's chief technology officer, Facebook's third core aim is to develop artificial intelligence technology.
Mike Schroepfer, Facebook's chief technology officer (CTO), was speaking at the technology conference Web Summit 2016 in Lisbon, Portugal. He said that the company is looking to work on its three core goals including global internet connectivity in the coming 10 years.
To ensure global internet connectivity, the company is exploring the use of satellites. It is also looking to develop wireless technology, which may provide Internet to people without requiring cable-based infrastructure. "Facebook's mission is to make the world more open and connected," Schroepfer said.
A breakthrough in this segment is related to Facebook's plan involving a high altitude plane. The company is looking to develop solar-powered planes which will be able to fly for an extended period. These planes are to be made from carbon fiber alloys and will weigh less than 1000 pound.
Facebook plans to test these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) called Aquila, in San Jose, California. The company has opened the technology used for these planes to public through the open-source Open Compute project.
The company said that sharing the technology will help to "dramatically reduce the cost of providing internet access across the world." Facebook hit a setback for its internet ambition when it lost a satellite in an explosion on the launch pad in September.