Boeing Spins Off Drone Tech Startups in Deal with Archer Aviation

Boeing has announced plans to spin off three of its startups, Wisk Aero, Insitu, and SkyGrid, in an all-stock deal with competing startup Archer Aviation. In exchange for a 16.5% stake in Archer, Boeing will retain access to key autonomy technology.

The three subsidiaries specialize in drone technology and logistics, and their acquisition by Archer Aviation is expected to give the company capabilities across nearly the entire autonomy stack.

Archer Aviation plans to use the acquired companies to strengthen its ZEE artificial intelligence platform, which would enable it to move from being a simple eVTOL manufacturer to becoming a broader autonomous aerospace company.