Joby Aviation has entered a deal to acquire Uber Elevate, with Uber to also invest $75 million into the California-based developer of small electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles for taxi services.
The two companies did not disclose the terms of the acquisition, but in addition to the new $75 million investment, Joby disclosed a previous $50 million investment from Uber. This took place during Joby’s Series C funding round in January 2020.
“Advanced air mobility has the potential to be exponentially positive for the environment and future generations,” says Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi.
“This deal allows us to deepen our partnership with Joby, the clear leader in this field, to accelerate the path to market for these technologies. “We’re excited for their transformational mobility solution to become available to the millions of customers who rely on our platform.”
The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory review.
Overall, Uber has invested $125 million in Joby, which has received total funding of $820 million.
“We were proud to partner with Uber Elevate last year and we’re even prouder to be welcoming them into the Joby team today, while deepening our cooperation with Uber,” says JoeBen Bevirt, founder and chief executive of Joby.
“The team at Uber Elevate has not only played an important role in our industry, they have also developed a remarkable set of software tools that build on more than a decade of experience enabling on-demand mobility. These tools and new team members will be invaluable to us as we accelerate our plans for commercial launch.”
Joby aims to have a viable air taxi service in operation by 2023, with an aircraft that can transport four passengers and a pilot up to 130nm (240km) on a single charge.
