Boeing has purchased all of Kitty Hawk’s stake in Wisk in a move to become a complete owner of the Wisk Aerial Mobility development company. This new full ownership structure allow Wisk to more fully utilize Boeing’s expertise in development, testing, and certification, though Wisk will continue to operate as a separate company.
The CEO of eVTOL developer Wisk Aero has confirmed that the Californian startup has become a fully owned subsidiary of Boeing. Wisk CEO, Bryan Yutko, made the announcement while attending a Boeing media event in the United States (US) on May 31, 2023. Yutko, who previously worked for Boeing as the chief engineer for Sustainability and Future Mobility, did not go into specifics of the agreement terms.
On June 1, 2023, the Wisk Aero website had already been updated with the ownership developments.
“In 2023, Wisk became a fully owned subsidiary of Boeing. While we operate separately, this relationship allows us to tap into Boeing’s development, testing, and certification expertise, and more,” the website stated.
Boeing had previously been one of two shareholders, the other being Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) startup Kittyhawk.
Wisk Aero was founded in 2019 as a joint venture between Boeing and Kitty Hawk Corporation, which was started by Google co-founder Larry Page.
Boeing invested over $450 million into Wisk last year, and the company until now had been financially and supported by Boeing, rather than a subsidiary. With this new development, Wisk has now become a wholly-owned subsidiary under Boeing, making the two companies a single shareholder.
Despite Boeing’s new ownership of Wisk, Wisk’s CEO Brian Yutko has maintained that the company will continue its current operations and development of the aircraft as its own entity. Because Boeing and Wisk have already been working closely together on this upcoming aircraft for several years, current operations for the company will likely continue as they are, although Wisk’s aircraft will now utlimately be a Boeing product.
By assuming ownership of Wisk, Boeing gains an opportunity to consolidate Wisk’s efforts and streamline the development process, while simultaneously making themselves a major industry leader in the eVTOL industry. This acquisition solidifies Boeing’s commitment to becoming a long-term leader in the aerial mobility space, and to bringing electric urban aircraft to market.
Late last year, Wisk unveiled CORA, the latest version of its aircraft; a four-passenger, autonomous, fully-electric tilt-rotor eVTOL with a range of 90 miles and the ability to charge in 15 minutes. With this aircraft, Wisk hopes to transform the way people move around and between large cities and connected regional destinations.
Sources: AeroTime Hub; Transport Up
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