Back This Kickstarter Campaign to Pilot a 9,000-Pound Mech Suit

Mech suits and similar robotic exoskeletons have long been a mainstay of science fiction. Think of Ripley using the Power Loader in Aliens to defeat the Xenomorph queen, the massive Kaiju-fighting Jaegers of Pacific Rim, or Colonel Miles Quaritch wreaking havoc in Avatar. Many prototype mech suits have been developed over the years, but they’re enormously expensive and can also be quite dangerous — meaning you’ll probably never get to experience one for yourself. However, thanks to the Alpha Mech Pilot Program Kickstarter campaign, you may soon have the opportunity to change that — if you have the cash.

Prosthesis: Mech Racing is a Canadian initiative focused on building real mech suits and even using them for sports. They envision a “mech racing league” in which teams clash in challenges to pit their human-piloted mechs against each other in competition. That might sound far-fetched when you consider how much a mech suit like this would cost to develop and construct, but events like the Monster Jam have proven that it is possible if there is enough interest. This Kickstarter campaign is intended to help generate that interest and to raise money in order to make mech racing possible. One option available to backers is to actually pilot the already-completed mech.

This vision started 14 years ago, when Prosthesis: Mech Racing co-founder Jonathan Tippett decided to come up with a way to create a functional mech suit. The prototype was finally completed in 2017, and the team has spent the last three years fine-tuning it. In that time, the massive 9,000 pound mech suit has only been piloted by a handful of people. Thanks to this Kickstarter campaign, you can become one of those lucky few. If you back the campaign at the proper level (starting at CA$ 2,500), you can fly out to the British Columbia Prosthesis: Mech Racing headquarters for one-on-one pilot training and the ability to jump in the mech yourself. That may be a lot of money, but this isn’t the kind of opportunity that comes around often.

If you’re simply interested in helping the team achieve their goals, you can also choose one of the other backer levels and get swag, like a hat or t-shirt, in return. The Kickstarter Campaign has already surpassed the funding goal, but you still have almost a month to get in on the action. Backers can get in the pilot seat as soon as November of this year!