Electric Air Taxis Consolidate Amid Regulatory Uncertainty

The eVTOL industry is experiencing a wave of consolidation as companies seek near-term revenue streams and navigate the lengthy regulatory process for electric air taxis.

In one of the more unexpected deals of the week, Archer Aviation announced that it has acquired its former rival Wisk Aero. Under the terms of the deal, Boeing agreed to sell Wisk Aero and two other subsidiaries to Archer in exchange for an ownership stake in the company. Boeing now holds a 16.5% stake in Archer.

Wisk Aero has taken a winding path since its inception as Kitty Hawk, an electric aviation startup led by Sebastian Thrun. The company shut down in 2022, but its Cora program lived on as a joint venture with Boeing. This joint venture was later renamed Wisk Aero.

Meanwhile, Joby Aviation has made a more predictable move, acquiring Resonant Sciences for $500 million. The deal marks Joby's push into the defense sector, with Resonant Sciences becoming a dedicated defense business under Joby.

Joby has been expanding into the defense sector over the past couple of years, even as it pursues its original mission to certify and manufacture electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft for use as urban air taxis.

In other news, Uber has sold off its stake in Serve Robotics, an autonomous delivery robot company. The company is still a business partner with Uber, and their contract, which puts Serve's delivery robots on the Uber Eats app, is set to expire in 2027.

Uber is investing in Galgo, a Chilean fintech company that specializes in extending credit to buy motorcycles.

Electric mobility startup Yulu has raised $93 million in a Series C round, comprising $63 million in equity led by GEF Capital Partners and $30 million in debt financing.

Aurora Innovation and Kodiak AI have received permits from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to begin testing their self-driving trucks on public roads in the state.

Avride has surpassed 100,000 autonomous rides on the Uber app in Dallas, although a human safety operator is still behind the wheel.

Delta Air Lines is investigating a cybersecurity incident in which an unidentified passenger allegedly created a fake Wi-Fi network on a flight.

Flock has announced a series of new policies and tools to curb abuse of its automated license plate camera reader systems and keep its law enforcement customers accountable.

Ford is on track to complete its $2 billion overhaul of its Louisville Assembly Plant in Kentucky, which will use a new assembly system to build its next-generation of EVs.

Ground Truth, an art project created to raise awareness about housing affordability in New York, has created a gadget that will trigger the brakes on Citi rental bikes, making it harder to pedal through rent-burdened neighborhoods.

Hiroshi Okuda, a longtime Toyota executive, has died. He was known for his efforts to push the gas-electric hybrid Prius vehicle.

Pony.ai and Uber plan to bring 2,000 robotaxis to four cities in Europe as part of an expanded partnership.

Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has promoted the DOT's effort to recruit video gamers as air traffic controllers.

Uber Freight is investigating a cyberattack and data breach that hacking and extortion gang Helix recently took credit for.

Waymo is expanding in California after the state's Public Utilities Commission approved terms of its commercial ride-hailing permit.

Zoox has released its safety case framework, a critical document for any company that wants to build trust with the public and show how and why it thinks its technology is safe enough.

TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 is just a couple of months away, and one guest who might be interesting to you is Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe.