The SMART Tire Company
Shape Memory Alloy Radial Technology
Reimagining the wheel, by reinventing the tire.
SMART Innovation
For over 50 years, NASA has been building tires for outer space
Hear it from the inventors themselves. Learn how NASA developed the future of tires on earth, through their experience sending rovers on Moon missions and then Mars, where the conditions are extreme and there are no spare tires for 50 million miles.
This technology enables the development of commercial non-pneumatic tires, based on its ability to support high loads and significant deformation with 100% shape recovery at the molecular level.
The SMART Tire Company & NASA featured on popular Veritasium show
Superelasticity in action
Watch as this University of Akron scientist performs a hands-on demonstration of NASA’s spring tire technology, deforming a tire all the way down to the wheel rim with zero permanent deformation.
The SMART Tire Company is a licensee of the spring tire technology, and further developing it for terrestrial applications, which will include special rubber integrations for treads and various vehicle sizes.
NASA Startup Studio 2020
The SMART Tire Company (STC) was conceived in 2020 as part of the FedTech NASA Startup Program. The founding team worked with inventors at NASA Glenn Research Center to explore commercial applications of this breakthrough tire technology and have raised an undisclosed amount of private funding to bring shape memory alloy tires to market.
FedTech is a private venture program funded by federal agencies and corporate partners, that connects entrepreneurs to technologies developed across the Department of Defense, NASA, Department of Energy, Department of the Interior, Department of Transportation, top-tier universities, corporate R&D arms and other research laboratories.
STC was voted (1st Place) The People’s Choice award winner for best pitch, among all the other NASA technologies participating in the program.
Strategic Partners 2021 -
The SMART Tire Company has a commercial license and federal Space Act Agreement with NASA Glenn Research Center, and strategic partnerships with Felt Bicycles (top performance cycling brand), Spin (a leading micro-mobility company, now owned by Bird Rides, Inc.), and the Hyundai Motor Group for automotive tire work. These partnerships and agreements will help STC with further research, data analytics, materials science and product development, in creating the optimal tire and mobility products using innovative design and shape memory alloy engineering.
At some point in 2024, we will be announcing our newest partnerships, that are currently confidential and under NDA. These partnerships include top aerospace (NASA’s Artemis lunar project and CLPS programs), electric vehicle, AV, mining, and eVTOL companies.
Mars Rover 2026 -
The SuperElastic SMA Spring Tire was originally developed by NASA for upcoming Moon and Mars rover missions. Past rovers used thin aluminum tires which eventually developed cracks and holes due to the tough Mars terrain.
The Mars Perseverance 2020 rover safely landed on Mars, February 18, 2021. Although the Perseverance aluminum tires are a bit stronger than previous rovers, future tires possibly made from shape memory alloys, like the MSR-Fetch rover in 2026 (credit: European Space Agency), will enable larger, longer lasting rovers on Mars, that may no longer need six wheels, but only four. Eventually, these robotic rover missions will path the way for future, human-driven, Space Exploration Vehicles on Mars and the Moon, marking The SMART Tire Company as the first ever “space tire” company.
Shape Memory Alloy Radial Technology (SMART) will help power a new era of transportation from the tread up, from scooter tires to bike tires, automotive, trucking, and all the way to aerospace.
“We are building the next, great American tire company, for a new generation of smarter vehicles and cleaner transportation.”
— The SMART Tire Company
“We are excited about the potential of METL™ and we are sharing our knowledge about scooter tire performance and specifications with The SMART Tire Company to help advance our mission to create cleaner, safer and better transportation for all.”
— James Berg, Research and Development Manager at Spin (Ford Mobility)