CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Everybody has a hobby, but high school student Max Owens's hobby has manifested into something that's hard to believe. 

What You Need To Know

  • Max Owens has been building a flying manned vehicle called the MAVRIK for the last three years

  • He started building drones when he was 12 

  • Owens is currently raising money to purchase the electronics for the MAVRIK so he can finish this project 

Owens was only 12 years old when he built his very first drone.

In the years since, he decided he wanted to go bigger. 

“I kind of went from 3D printers to remote control vehicles,” Owens said. “Then I kind of decided to work on a bigger drone because I really just thought it would be a huge challenge to myself, and I was curious to see if I could do it.” 

Three years later, Owens created the MAVRIK. 

The MAVRIK is a self-flying passenger vehicle. 

“It’ll basically do all the work for them…take off, fly to the destination and land it for the passenger. And the passenger really doesn’t have to do anything,” said Owens. 

Owens created everything himself, all while juggling his studies and playing lacrosse and soccer at Providence Day School.

“That’s kind of part of the reason why it’s taken so long I think… all of my classes and all the work,” he said. “But a lot of time during break, I’ll work on it or right after practice. I’ll come home and take a look and work on my designs or program.” 

While some might be skeptical, Owens says the MAVRIK would not only be affordable, but also safe. 

“It has eight motors,” he said. “It’s a quadcopter, so if a couple of the motors fail it will still be able to land itself safely. It’s also energy efficient, and it's green energy. It’s electric so you just charge it up and fly.” 

At 17, Max Owens turned an idea into a reality. And while it’s been a lot of work, he’s excited to see just where the MAVRIK will take off.  

Owens is currently fundraising money to buy and install the electronics. He was recently accepted into Cornell University, where he plans to attend in the fall of 2022. 

If you are interested reaching out to Owens about fundraising or learning more about the MAVRIK, you can contact him at info@mavrik.tech or max@mavrik.tech. 

Providence Day School also wrote an article about Owens and his vehicle. You can read that article here.