Air taxi startup Joby Aviation will acquire the autonomy division of Xwing Inc., a maker of aviation technology.
Under the deal, all Xwing’s existing automation and autonomy technology activities will be acquired.
The move follows Joby’s deal for Inras GmbH for its radar sensor technology in 2021. Joby said Xwing’s technology will benefit both near-term piloted operations as well as plans for future autonomous aircraft. Additionally, the tech will also play a role in accelerating Joby’s existing contract for deliverables with the U.S. Department of Defense and future contract potential.
In 2023, the U.S. Air Force signed a contract with Joby to station the first air taxis at Edwards Air Force Base in California sometime this year. The $55 million contract will see the first-ever air taxis used for military purposes.
Xwing’s previous autonomous flights used a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft. This tested the company’s automated technology such as:
- Vision system processing
- Detect and avoid algorithms
- Trajectory planning and real-time updates
- Decision making
- Ground control stations
- Remote operations and the integration of AI
- Machine learning algorithms
Earlier this year, Xwing participated in the Air Force’s Agile Flag 24-1, a joint force exercise where the company completed daily flights covering about 2,800 miles and landing at eight public and military airports.
