The investment puts the two companies a step closer toward a “strategic manufacturing alliance,” Joby said.
When Joby first announced its Dayton manufacturing plans in September 2023, one of the reasons company leaders said Dayton was chosen was the presence of Toyota nearby in Georgetown, Ky.
“We’re already seeing the benefit of working with Toyota in streamlining manufacturing processes and optimizing design,” JoeBen Bevirt, founder and chief executive of Joby, said in a statement. “This is an important next step in our alliance with Toyota to scale the promise of electric flight. With this capital and Toyota’s legendary production expertise, we’re enhancing our ability to scale cutting-edge design and manufacturing to meet the demands of our partners and customers.”
“This milestone further cements the collaboration and alignment between our two companies,” said Tetsuo “Ted” Ogawa, CEO of Toyota North America. “Our investment in Joby reflects our shared dream of mobility for all and our commitment to achieving a future of air mobility.”
The companies first announced the planned investment last October.
A pre-revenue company, Joby has been working to create a new market, flying electric air taxis, quiet emissions-free craft that lift off and land like helicopters but fly like airplanes, aiming to make short-hop aerial commuter travel a reality for more travelers.
The business has built five aircraft on a pilot manufacturing line in Marina, Calif., even as Joby leaders have said they are readying a manufacturing site in a former postal facility near Dayton International.
Joby says it is the only eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) company to deliver aircraft from a production line.
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