Flying cars are coming out of the prototype phase

3 innovation and digital news in 1 minute. Every Monday. Episode 375

Joby Aviation for flying taxis

Joby is well-financed ($2 billion) and listed on the NYSE. One needs massive financing to develop air taxis. Air taxis with propellers are the standard format and Joby started the scaling of manufacturing with a new plant in Ohio. And a live test bringing passengers from JFK airport to central Manhattan in 7 Minutes. Opinion: The flying taxi development is out of the prototype phase. Joby's opening of a plant is a sign of this, they intend to produce 500 aircraft per year. Taxis that would fly in many places in the world.

Much further than expected! Out of the pure prototype phase.

A real flying car like in films.

Alef Aeronautics has an objective, to develop a flying car that looks like a car well-known from “Back to the Future”. An endeavour dating from 2015. Alef showed the project and the first prototype at Mobile World Congress 2024. 2.850 pre-orders already for this project. Opinion: A big technical challenge — first, the “Model A” is a low-speed normal car. If the driver wants to go faster they’ll fly. Well, flying is a vertical take-off and it rotates to fly. So the cabin rotates as well.

A child’s dream to come true?

The European champion Volocopter in scaling phase

Volocopter is the European contender in the urban air mobility sphere. Also at the edge of scaling with two recent major news: approval of plant extension for larger production and a license to train pilots. A strong sign of a new level of growth. Opinion: Volocopter is well-known and so often referred to. But who are the investors ($780m in total)? A potpourri of them: Daimler, DB Schenker, Intel, Venture firms from Saudi Arabia, Korea, and Hong Kong (the largest amounts), and Geely (car / China). Interesting, isn’t it?

European wunderkind with very few European investments!