Joby Aviation raises $500 million from Toyota for a flying taxi

Joby Aviation has just finalized the largest single round of financing for a flying taxi startup in years.

The $500 million came from Toyota, which is one of many large transportation companies that want flying taxis – essentially modern helicopters – to be part of everyday commercial travel.

Archer Aviation, among others, has raised hundreds of millions of dollars this year by developing its own flying taxis and airport network in California.

Last week, six travel startups announced fundraising totaling nearly $540 million.

Joby Aviation: $500 million

Joby Aviation, which is developing an electric air taxi for commercial services, raised $500 million from Toyota Motor Corp.

The first half of the financing is expected to be finalized later this year, with the second half in 2025.

Toyota has currently invested $894 million in Joby. Toyota says its investment is in line with its goal to redefine itself as a “mobility company” and “realize the dream of air mobility for personal or everyday travel.”

According to Crunchbase, Joby has now raised a total of $2.5 billion. The startup went public in 2021 at a valuation of $4.5 billion following a merger with a special purpose acquisition company.

The California-based company is designing an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi with a top speed of 200 miles per hour, a maximum range of 250 miles and room for a pilot and four passengers.

The company intends to use its planes in urban environments as a type of ride-sharing service that can be booked via an app. He says the plane ride from downtown Manhattan to JFK will take 7 minutes.

Skyports, which raised $110 million earlier this year, is designing the vertiport ahead of Joby’s planned launch of air taxi services in Dubai by 2026.

Joby’s final funds will go toward certification and commercial production of the plane. In August, the company said the fourth of five stages of the certification process was more than one-third complete.

Joby recently completed pilot production of the third aircraft at its California facility, where Toyota engineers are working with Joby staff. The company has started construction of an expanded facility, which is scheduled to open next year.

Since 2019, Toyota has also been helping Joby develop its production processes. In 2023, the companies signed an agreement under which Toyota will provide key components for the production of Joby’s plane.

Flight doctor: $20 million

Air Doctor, an app that connects travelers with healthcare providers, has raised $20 million in Series B funding.

The round was led by aMoon, with participation from Tokio Marine Holdings, Samsung Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Vintage Investment Partners, Phoenix Insurance and Munich Re Ventures.

Tel Aviv-based Air Doctor claims to have a network of more than 20,000 doctors and specialists in 84 countries, offering medical consultations in 21 languages ​​at any time. It offers clinic visits, home visits and video consultations with the possibility of issuing valid local prescriptions. The company says its technology is also expected to streamline data processing for healthcare providers and insurers.

According to the company, the funds will be used for the startup’s expansion in Asia.

Aiello: $5 million

Aiello, an AI concierge serving hotel guests, raised $5 million.

The round was co-led by Cool Japan Fund and CDIB Cross Border Innovation Fund II, with participation from E.Sun Venture Capital, B Current Mstar Impact Investment, JAFCO Asia and Wistron Corp.

Taiwanese company Aiello sells hotels room service devices integrated with an artificial intelligence-powered bot that guests can communicate with via text or voice messages. It looks like a high-tech alarm clock, but the integrated AI bot can answer some questions about hotel services, accept room service requests, make local travel recommendations and control room features such as heating, startups say.

The startup claims to have facilitated over 55.1 million guest interactions.

Aiello has agreements with over 180 hotels, covering over 20,000 rooms. Clients include Seibu Prince Hotels & Resorts, Millennium Hotels and Resorts, Taiwan’s Cosmos Hotels & Resorts and Caesar Park Hotels & Resorts.

The funds will be used for international expansion, especially in Japan and Southeast Asia, the startup says.

Odyssey: $5 million

Odysee, which focuses on helping airlines optimize flight schedules, raised $5 million in seed funding

The round was led by UP.Partners.

Odysee is the first startup founded and developed by Alaska Airlines and UP.Labs, a program that develops business ideas for the mobility sector. Alaska Airlines and UP.Labs partnered last year and plan to launch additional startups focused on aviation and mobility issues over the next three years.

Arkansas-based Odysee says its AI-powered platform helps airlines solve route scheduling problems. It also aims to assess the impact – including on revenue and profitability – that certain schedule changes may have. It works by running hundreds of simulations in a matter of seconds as a stress test for future schedules, the startup says.

Odysee plans to expand into logistics and operations related to other airlines at a later date.

The startup’s first client is Alaska Airlines.

Hotelverse: $5.5 million

Hotelverse, which creates digital copies of hotel plans so guests can select rooms, has raised $5.5 million (€5 million) in a Series A round.

GED Conexo Ventures led the round, with support from Faraday Venture Partners, Eoniq Fund, Sabadell VC and Archipelago

Spain’s Hotelverse says its software takes a similar approach to the model used by airlines, many of which allow passengers to see the plane’s configuration before choosing a seat.

Hotels can integrate this technology into the booking process on their websites. The startup allows a hotel to share specific room attributes, including floor plan, views, direct sunlight hours and window views.

Guests pay an average of €60 extra to choose a hotel room, which the startup says increases direct booking sales by more than 30%.

Clients include Radisson Hotel Group, Hyatt Hotels, Grupo Barceló, RIU Hotels, Palladium Hotel Group and Pestana CR7 hotels on Gran Vía in Madrid.

Truth: $3.5 million

Indeed, the eSIM app has raised $3.5 million in funding.

The round was led by 1982 Ventures, with support from Beenext, Kopital Ventures and business angels.

Truely, based in Singapore, enables users of modern mobile phones to access internet data in over 200 locations without the need to replace physical SIM cards.

The company also plans to start selling its services to tour operators, who could then offer them to consumers.

Business	Scene	Lead	Rise
Joby Aviation	Indefinite	Toyota Automotive Corporation	500 million dollars
Doctor of Aviation	B series	Moon	20 million dollars
Aiello	Indefinite	Cool Japan Fund, CDIB	5 million dollars
Odyssey	Seed	UP.Partners	5 million dollars
Hotelwers	A series	GED Conexo ventures	$5.5 million
Really	Indefinite	Projects from 1982	$3.5 million

Skift Cheat Sheet

Seed capital is money used to start a business, often run by business angels and friends or family.

A series financing typically comes from venture capitalists. The round is intended to help startup founders make sure their product is something customers actually want to buy.

B series financing is mainly about venture capital firms helping businesses grow faster. These fundraising rounds can help you recruit qualified staff and develop cost-effective marketing.

C series financing usually involves helping a company grow, for example through acquisitions. In addition to VCs, hedge funds, investment banks and private equity firms often participate.

Series D, E and beyond These mostly mature companies and a round of financing can help a company prepare for an IPO or acquisition. Various private investors may participate.