Wisk Aero
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryAerospace, Advanced Air Mobility
Founded2019[1]
HeadquartersMountain View, California, United States
Key people
Brian Yutko, CEO
ProductsWisk Cora electric aircraft
ParentBoeing
Websitewisk.aero

Wisk Aero is an aerospace manufacturer based in Mountain View, California, United States. The company develops self-flying electric vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft designed to be operated as air taxis.[2] The company was formed in 2019 as a partnership between Boeing and Google co-founder Larry Page's Kitty Hawk aircraft company.[1]

Since May 2023, Wisk is a wholly owned subsidiary of Boeing.[3]

History

Wisk Aero's predecessor, Zee Aero, was founded in 2010 with backing from Google's co-founder Larry Page.[4] In 2017, Zee Aero was merged with Kitty Hawk, which made an ultralight aircraft that could take off vertically over open water.[5] In March 2018, Kitty Hawk rebranded its Zee.Aero group as Cora.[5]

On June 25, 2019, Kitty Hawk announced a partnership with Boeing, to combine Cora innovations with Boeing's scale and aerospace expertise.[6] In December, the Cora team was rebranded and spun off as a separate company called Wisk Aero.[1] The company was headquartered in Mountain View, California, and its CEO at the time was Gary Gysin.[1]

In January 2020, then-CEO Gary Gysin announced that their vehicles would be completely self-flying.[2] In February, Wisk became the first partner of the New Zealand Government's Airspace Integration Trials programme, designed to facilitate the safe testing, development and market validation of advanced unmanned aircraft.[7] In November 2020, Wisk Aero joined NASA's Advanced Air Mobility Project, as part of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), to test how new vehicles interact with other air traffic.[8]

On April 6, 2021, Wisk Aero filed a lawsuit against rival air taxi startup Archer Aviation, alleging theft of trade secrets.[9] In May, Wisk Aero announced a partnership with Blade Urban Air Mobility to operate 30 of Wisk Aero's Cora eVTOLs on Blade's US network of terminals.[10] Wisk Aero's Cora would be added to Blade's private air service digital platform, with Wisk Aero to be compensated based on flight time.[11] In July, Wisk Aero was one of several vendors named to participate in NASA's National Campaign (NC-1) to conduct operational flight demonstrations in urban environments.[12] In August, Archer Aviation countersued Wisk Aero for $1 billion in damages, claiming that Wisk Aero's earlier lawsuit prevented Archer from raising capital.[13]

In January 2022, Wisk Aero announced a $450 million investment by Boeing, to further develop pilot-less flying taxis.[14] At the time of the funding, Boeing announced its goal was to have Wisk's sixth generation passenger vehicle be the first autonomous passenger-carrying vehicle to be certified in the United States, to be presented for certification around 2028.[14] In February, the company began working with the Long Beach Economic Partnership (LBEP) in the city of Long Beach, California to begin planning for the introduction of autonomous flight service in the city.[15] On April 17, the company was one of several companies featured in a 60 Minutes segment on eVTOLs hosted by Anderson Cooper.[16]

In May 2023, the company announced that it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Boeing, and would continue to operate independently.[3]

Wisk performed a public autonomous flight demonstration for the first time on July 25, 2023, with its fifth-generation Cora at the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.[17][18]

Products

Early version of Wisk Cora flying in New Zealand
Early prototype of Wisk Cora flying in New Zealand

Wisk Aero develops self-flying eVTOL aircraft.[2] Its flagship model is the Wisk Cora, a two-passenger all-electric self-piloted aircraft. It has an experimental airworthiness certificate from the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the United States FAA.[19]

As of April 2021, there were five different versions of Cora, with a sixth under development.[20]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Boyle, Alan (December 9, 2019). "After ups and downs, Boeing and Kitty Hawk reboot flying-car venture as Wisk". GeekWire. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Head, Elan (January 20, 2020). "Wisk's electric air taxis will fly themselves, says CEO". CNN Money. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Root, Al (May 31, 2023). "Boeing Buys Self-Driving Air Taxi Start-Up Wisk". Barron's. Archived from the original on June 1, 2023.
  4. ↑ Fiegerman, Seth (April 24, 2017). "Google cofounder's 'flying car' makes its debut". CNN Money. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  5. 1 2 "Zee Aero (now Wisk) Z-P2". eVTOL News. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Kitty Hawk Announcements". eVTOL News. August 24, 2019. Archived from the original on April 24, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Airspace Integration Trials". Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employtment. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  8. ↑ Whiting, Teresa (November 18, 2020). "Two Industry Partners Join NASA's Advanced Air Mobility Project". NASA. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  9. ↑ Hirsch, Lauren; Chokshi, Niraj (April 6, 2021). "Electric Aircraft Start-Up Accuses Rival of Stealing Its Secrets". NY Times. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  10. ↑ Reichmann, Kelsey (May 10, 2021). "Wisk and Blade Form New Urban Air Mobility Partnership". Aviation Today. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  11. ↑ Alamalhodaei, Aria (May 5, 2021). "Wisk Aero and Blade Urban Air Mobility partner to bring electric air taxi services to the skies". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  12. ↑ Newton, Laura (July 8, 2021). "NASA's National Campaign Adds Partners". NASA. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  13. ↑ Alamalhodaei, Aria (August 11, 2021). "Archer Aviation is seeking $1B in damages from Wisk Aero as legal dispute escalates". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  14. 1 2 Kovach, Steve (January 24, 2022). "Boeing invests $450 million in flying taxi developer Wisk". CNBC. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  15. ↑ Patterson, Thom (February 23, 2022). "Wisk Aero Wants Self-Flying Air Taxis in Long Beach, California". Flying. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  16. ↑ Alamalhodaei, Aria (April 17, 2022). "Anderson Cooper flies in an eVTOL". CBS News. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  17. ↑ Carey, Bill (July 26, 2023). "Wisk Conducts First Public Autonomous eVTOL Flight". Aviation Week.
  18. ↑ Carey, Bill (July 26, 2023). "Wisk Conducts First Public Autonomous eVTOL Flight". Aviation Week.
  19. ↑ Reed, Jessica (January 25, 2022). "Boeing Invests $450 Million in Wisk eVTOL Development". Aviation Today. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  20. ↑ Reichmann, Kelsey (April 1, 2021). "Wisk Moves Forward with Transport Trial in New Zealand; Adds Insitu Integration". Aviation Today. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
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