9 Amazingly Futuristic Real Vehicles You Had No Idea Existed

Ever since humans first realized walking just wasn't fast enough, we've been seeking new, innovative ways to get places. That's why brilliant minds haven't stopped at the transportation status quo. A car? Not good enough. Let's try an autonomous electric-powered racing automobile. A typical submarine is fine, but how about one that's capable of taking humans all the way down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench? These are the types of vessels humans can't help but invent.

Some of the vehicles in this list aren't around anymore, and some haven't finished production yet, but all are very real and speak to the incredible nature of human invention and innovation. 

Designed by Daniel Simon, these cars are real-life science fiction. They're participating in Roborace, an affiliation of the Formula E racing series, and will begin a 10-race world tour in Fall 2016. The cars are entirely autonomous, electrically powered and can reach speeds of more than 190 miles per hour. 

The team behind each car is responsible for computing algorithms to determine its strategy for each race track. These vehicles could very well be the future of auto racing—and they certainly make Google's self-driving cars look like child's play.

In 1960 and with two passengers, the Trieste became the first manned vessel to reach the bottom of Challenger Deep, part of the Mariana Trench and the deepest known point in all the world's oceans.

The Trieste was an ingeniously-designed vehicle. It was a bit like a zeppelin, except the upper tank—or float chamber—was filled with gasoline, which floats. There was a separate compartment for the vessel's crew. The Trieste sank to the floor with the assistance of iron ballasts. When it was ready to surface again, the ballasts were released. 

I literally can't think of anything scarier than descending to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, and it's amazing a vehicle could reach such depths. 

A human-powered helicopter may not seem like a terribly futuristic invention, but the massive-scale engineering behind it certainly is—and besides, emission-free is the way of the future. The Atlas human-powered helicopter was designed by AeroVelo, a design team specializing in ambitious human-powered vehicle design. 

AeroVelo's design for the Atlas won the Sikorsky Prize, worth $250,000.

If you think the sQuba looks like something out of a James Bond film, you're right. The design for Swiss company Rinspeed's car/submarine vehicle was inspired by "The Spy Who Loved Me." The sQuba is a zero-emissions vehicle. For safety reasons, It's also a convertible—but don't worry, the interior is resistant to both salt and fresh water. 

The car originally premiered in 2008 at the Geneva Motor Show, though there's no production schedule yet. But who would buy a sQuba? Rinspeed CEO Frank M. Rinderknecht has said, "They might sell as toys for rich people, perhaps."

Patented by J.A. Purves in 1930, the Dynasphere was a single-wheeled vehicle that never really got out of the experimental stage. The vehicle came in both gas and electric models and worked just fine, as long as it traveled in a straight line with continuous motion. It failed to catch on because it didn't brake or steer so well. That's a bit of a problem for a vehicle. See the Dynasphere in action.

But it was a pretty interesting idea and spoke a lot of 1930s technological optimism. It's refreshing to know that automobile designers were able to think outside the two-four wheel box. It also reminds me a lot of this "South Park" episode.

Yves Rossy, a Swiss inventor and former fighter pilot, created this contemporary take on the classic jet pack. It's sort of like a jet-powered wing-suit that can reach speeds of 186 miles per hour. Rossy earned the nickname "Jetman" after he flew the jetpack in several highly-publicized test flights. 

This is the bicycle of the future. The "Eta" speedbike is a human-powered land vehicle, and the fastest one in the world; it reached the speed of 86.65 miles per hour in 2015. It was also designed by AeroVelo, the design team behind the Atlas human-powered helicopter. 

Designed by Russian inventor Alexander Begak, the Evolution is essentially an all-purpose vehicle meant for use by both civilian and military personnel. According to The Future of Things, the Evolution can fly at a height of 4,000 meters, can drive 400 meters without refueling, has a specialized floatation device and is virtually undetectable by radar. 

There's no word yet as to when (or if) the vehicle will be mass-produced—but I've got a feeling the Russian military would want to keep it under their hats. 

The UH-19XRW is about as close to a flying car—or more accurately, a boat—as we've gotten yet. All you need is a boating license, and yes, you can buy a Hoverwing.

The craft hovers above water at a distance of one-two meters and can travel at speeds of up to 75 miles per hour. The vehicle has the distinct transportation advantage of being able to reach areas most other vehicles can't. If you want one of these, it'll cost you—the 130 horsepower model starts at $179,000.