How does a bearingless rotor work on a helicopter?
There are still bearings for the spinning part of the rotor mast coming out of the transmission, and for blade pitch in the hub itself.  The bearingless part is that the blade flapping and lead/lag functions are accommodated by &quot;elastomeric&quot; hinges, basically, rubber-type compliant bushings.  It's very similar to the control arm attachments on modern cars where the control arm is attached to the frame with a large rubber bushing, bonded into a sleeve that is bolted to the structure, that accommodates the arm's rotation while isolating the control arm from the car.
Some helicopters also achieve this function by making the root section of the blade into a flexible shaft that is free bend in the flapping and lead/lag direction.
Hingeless rotors have been around since at least the late 70s.