Tag Archives: JoeBen Bevirt

Toyota Motor, Joby Aviation Meet at Toyota’s Technical Center

Toyota Motor Corporation and Joby Aviation executives came together at Toyota’s Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Shizuoka, Japan on Saturday 2 November. Present were Akio Toyoda, chairman Toyota Group, and Joby CEO and founder, JoeBen Bevirt, along with Joby’s air taxi, an electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL*). After its first flights in Japan on previous day, the plan was to get senior executives on board, so to speak.

However, the weather kept them on the ground. Nonetheless, their aspirations still soared upward. “Since its founding, Toyota has been working to realize a society in which everyone can move freely. About 100 years ago, in 1925, Sakichi Toyoda, founder of the Toyota Group, offered a prize to encourage the development of a storage battery that could provide enough performance ‘to fly an airplane across the Pacific Ocean.’ Since then, Toyota has continued to focus on the challenge of air mobility through the generations,” Toyota said in a release likely prepared when the Sun was shining. Continue reading

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Toyota to Invest in Joby Aviation EV Taxis!

In a quiet, overlooked announcement earlier this month, Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM) and Joby Aviation( NYSE: JOBY), a company developing electric air taxis for commercial passenger service, announced that Toyota will invest an additional $500 million to support the certification and commercial production of Joby’s electric air taxi.  The investment will be made in two equal tranches, with the first targeted to close later this year and the second during 2025. This is part of a trend of traditional automobile companies transitioning to mobility companies  on land, the seas, air or space.

“Today’s investment builds on nearly seven years of collaboration between our companies,” said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO, Joby Aviation. “The knowledge and support shared by Toyota has been instrumental in Joby’s success and we look forward to deepening our relationship as we deliver on our shared vision for the future of air travel.” Continue reading

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