Wisk receives $450 million in funding from The Boeing Company, supporting market plans for its autonomous eVTOL aircraft
Wisk has secured $450 million in funding from The Boeing Company, helping to reinforce the self-flying air taxi developer’s position as a privately-backed company and advance the progress of its sixth generation eVTOL aircraft.
The funding will also support the company as it enters an intensive growth phase over the next year, its preparations for the launch of scale manufacturing, and the company’s go-to-market efforts.
Within five years of certifying its sixth generation aircraft — the first-ever candidate of an autonomous, all-electric, passenger-carrying aircraft in the USA — Wisk intends to operate one of the industry’s largest fleets of eVTOL aircraft. In this timeframe, the company anticipates close to 14 million annual flights, bringing time savings to more than 40 million people across 20 cities – all with zero emissions.
Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk said: “Wisk is extremely well-positioned to deliver on our long-term strategy and commitment to safe, everyday flight for everyone. We are incredibly fortunate to have Boeing as not only an investor but a strategic partner, which provides us with access to a breadth of resources, industry-leading expertise, a global reach, extensive certification experience, and more.
“As we enter this next stage of our growth, this additional funding provides us with capital while allowing us to remain focused on our core business and our number one priority, safety.”
Wisk began in 2010 as Zee Aero, with a mission to deliver safe, everyday flight for everyone, and later merged with Kitty Hawk Corporation. Upon recognising the commercial potential of Wisk’s 5th generation aircraft, the aircraft and team were spun out to form Wisk, with an investment from The Boeing Company.
Over the past decade, Wisk has achieved a number of aviation and industry firsts, most notably, the first flight of an all-electric, autonomous, eVTOL aircraft designed for passenger use, in the U.S.
Previous undisclosed funding rounds were led by The Boeing Company and Kitty Hawk Corporation, through a joint venture, making Wisk one of the only AAM companies to be backed by two aviation leaders. Kitty Hawk remains an investor and has supported the development of Wisk’s previous generations of aircraft.
Marc Allen, Chief Strategy Officer of Boeing said: “With this investment, we are reconfirming our belief in Wisk’s business and the importance of their work in pioneering all-electric, AI-driven, autonomous capability for the aerospace industry.
“Autonomy is the key to unlocking scale across all AAM applications, from passenger to cargo and beyond. That’s why straight-to-autonomy is a core first principle. Boeing and Wisk have been at the forefront of AAM innovation for more than a decade, and will continue to lead in the years ahead.”
With its deep expertise in autonomous, electric flight, its extensive flight test history, key knowledge and insights from the development of five generations of aircraft, and the strength of its partnerships, Wisk is positioned to maintain its leadership in the AAM and broader mobility space.
Notable highlights over the past 12 months include the first-of-its-kind trial for autonomous eVTOL aircraft in New Zealand and a new partnership with NASA to create a new framework for autonomous passenger flight. Wisk also confirmed it would provide, supply and maintain 30 of its aircraft to Blade for use on short-distance routes between terminals across the USA.
And finally, Wisk has lent its expertise to the industry by publishing several white papers. These include the first one to showcase opinions on autonomous eVTOL aircraft services and one which outlined safe and conscious approaches to launch advanced air mobility services.
