LAS VEGAS - And off it went.

A company that hopes to zip people and cargo through tubes at hundreds of miles an hour provided a glimpse of its propulsion system for the first time Wednesday in North Las Vegas.

The seconds-long, outdoor demonstration by Hyperloop One featured what appeared to be a blip of metal gliding across a small track before disappearing into a cloud against the desert landscape.

Developers say it could whisk people from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 minutes and could be as revolutionary to transportation as the internet has been to society.

The California-based company says a full-scale, full-speed test of its technology could come by the end of this year.