Toyota Invests $500 Million in Air Taxi Startup

Forget off-road. Toyota is going above-road. 

On Wednesday, the world’s largest carmaker announced it’s investing $500 million into Joby Aviation, a Santa Cruz, California-based startup that wants to make flying taxis. It’s a major cash injection in a sector that’s had a bumpy ride when it comes to funding.

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Technologically speaking, electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles are still germinating. There’s a smattering of eVTOL startups readying themselves for different markets once the vehicles are actually ready and sanctioned to fly, and a bushel of different business models they’re pursuing (including organ transportation). For Joby, the pitch has always been to become the Uber of the skies. “Costs will be similar to what a passenger would pay for Uber Black,” Joby head of air operations and people Bonny Simi told The Daily Upside in May.

Toyota has already marked itself as something of a Joby believer. It handed the startup a little under $400 million back in 2020, and now it’s doubling down:

• The companies said in their press release that the fresh investment will go toward getting Joby’s vehicles cleared by regulators and onto an actual production line.
• Joby’s share price bounced up 27% following the announcement, but is still down about 54% since the company went public via a SPAC in 2021.

“Toyota’s investment, which will be made in two equal tranches, will support our ongoing work on aircraft certification and commercial production. Toyota employees already work side by side with the Joby team in California, and Toyota supports us with process planning, manufacturing method development, and tooling design,” a Joby spokesperson told The Daily Upside on Wednesday. “The investment will see us continue to work more closely together, with the second tranche, in particular, focused on establishing a strategic manufacturing alliance.”

Pick Your Flying Horse: Toyota isn’t the only legacy automaker channeling funds into flying cars. Stellantis invested $55 Million into eVTOL startup Archer in July, following a $110 million investment in 2023. Above all, no one wants to be left in the dust when flying cars take off.