HT Aero becomes Asia’s most-funded flying car company
Business & Technology
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What do unicorns and flying cars have in common? They’re both the stuff of fantasies — and they’re both related to HT Aero:
- Valued at $1 billion after a $500 million-plus Series A, the Xpeng Motors affiliate is rocketing toward its goal of delivering a flying car to consumers by 2024.
- Its latest model, the X2, cruises at 80 miles per hour, holds two passengers, and runs for 35 minutes on a single charge.
The context: After its latest funding round, HT Aero is claiming to be the most-funded urban air transport company in Asia — but around the world, it’s far from the only company with its eyes in the sky:
- U.S. air taxi start-up Joby and Germany’s Lilium raised $1.6 billion and $830 million, respectively, from their public offerings at the start of the year.
- In China, domestic player EHang, and Volocopter, a German partner of Geely Holding Group, are also pursuing the air taxi business.
The takeaway: It’ll be a while before we’re all traveling like the Jetsons: product development aside, the biggest hurdle will be getting regulatory approval, since flying cars would bring unimaginable changes to travel and traffic if widely adopted.
