Joby Aviation, founded in 2009 by JoeBen Bevirt and headquartered near Santa Cruz, California, is developing an all-electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft and the supporting ecosystem to operate it as an air taxi service. The aircraft is designed to take off and land vertically, fly at speeds of up to 200 mph, cover ranges of up to 100 miles, and produce zero emissions - with a particular emphasis on quiet operation. The company has spent more than a decade designing, testing, and refining its eVTOL technology in the redwoods above Santa Cruz before moving into production scaling and FAA certification.
The technical scope is broad. Engineering work spans electric propulsion systems, aircraft design and testing, noise reduction, aerospace certification, and manufacturing scale-up. Joby is actively advancing through the FAA certification process while simultaneously scaling production - two workstreams that place significant demand across software, hardware, avionics, and manufacturing engineering disciplines. The company operates across 15+ locations worldwide and employs over 2,500 people.
Joby has formed strategic partnerships with Toyota, Delta Air Lines, and Uber, among others. These relationships span manufacturing expertise, distribution, and prior urban air mobility work. The intended commercial product is an air taxi service built around the eVTOL aircraft, aimed at reducing urban commute times - the company cites the example of turning a two-hour gridlocked commute into a 15-minute flight.
Key technical domains relevant to engineers and technologists at Joby include:
- eVTOL aircraft design, testing, and certification
- Electric propulsion and all-electric systems
- Aerospace regulatory processes (FAA certification)
- Production scaling and manufacturing engineering
- Noise reduction and acoustic engineering
- Urban air mobility operations and infrastructure
