But the time in-flight isn't wasted anymore. Planes have wi-fi now, you can be doing other work or even attending other virtual meetings during the flight. Being on a plane for 13 hours doesn't mean 13 hours of thumb-twiddling anymore.

How is it? My understanding is that it's pretty pricey, I can't imagine it'd be very fast (certainly wouldn't be if everyone is using it).

I work at a place that doesn't pay for anything beyond basic economy for business travel, which isn't that uncommon of a cost-cutting measure. I'm definitely not going to be able to expense expensive in flight wifi. To say nothing of work productivity on a cramped tin tube.

If you're working in a place that only pays for basic economy, then you are certainly not a candidate for a supersonic flight at a typical ticket price of $16,000 transatlantic, no matter how important the meeting you need to get to is, just to avoid spending $100 on in-flight wifi.

The early days of jet travel were also very expensive. We didn't get to Ryanair-style low fares overnight, but through successive iterations.

At least one of the startups working on it has promised comparable or lower per-seat mile cost, and has orders on book: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/36952/boom-rolls-out-i...