"Inversion is building earth-orbiting capsules to deliver goods anywhere in the world from outer space."

"To make that a reality, Inversion’s capsule will come through the earth’s atmosphere at about 25 times as fast as the speed of sound, making the parachute essential for a soft landing and undisturbed cargo.... Inversion aims to develop a four-foot-diameter capsule carrying a payload equivalent to the size of a few carry-on suitcases by 2025. Once in orbit, the capsule could, the company hopes, navigate itself to a private commercial space station or stay in orbit with solar panels until summoned back to earth.... If Inversion is successful, it’s possible to imagine hundreds or thousands of containers floating around space for up to five years — like some (really) distant storage lockers."

Not a joke. A big article in the NYT: "Dreaming of Suitcases in Space/A California start-up company believes it can one day speed delivery of important items by storing them in orbit."