Joby’s proprietary “ElevateOS” air taxi software system includes an operations core, pilot app and consumer-facing passenger app, all of which are FAA approved for use, Joby said.
The software also includes a matching engine, similar to those used by ride-hailing apps today, which the company says matches passengers with available flights.
Joby said it was able to test the software by leveraging its Part 135 air carrier certificate, which it received from the Federal Aviation Administration more than two years ago, to allow Joby employees to book flights “using the Joby Rider app at any time, origin and destination of their choice.”
The company will explain the software during a virtual presentation Thursday afternoon.
Joby has been developing and testing these software tools in-house since acquiring Uber’s air taxi division, Uber Elevate, in 2021. In 2019, Uber Elevate launched and operated UberCopter, the world’s first on-demand, multi-modal air taxi service in New York City, using traditional helicopters that could be booked through the Uber app.
“The air taxi service we’re trying to provide is unlike any other kind of air travel that’s ever existed before,” Eric Allison, Joby’s chief product officer and former head of Uber Elevate, said in a Joby statement. “We expect travelers to book on-demand and be on a plane within minutes, much like they use ride-sharing on the ground today. To do this, we’ve had to completely rethink the software and operations of these aircraft.”
Joby announced last September that it plans to build a facility at Dayton International Airport capable of delivering up to 500 aircraft a year and support up to 2,000 jobs.
The company announced in March that it would acquire a former postal facility at Dayton International Airport and use it as a manufacturing facility.
