Autonomous small aircraft startup takes off
The funding round, says the company, will allow it to scale operations and continue to hire top aerospace and software talent in its mission to “dramatically increase human mobility via fully-autonomous, affordable and clean personal aerial vehicles.” The funding round was led by Eniac Ventures with participation from Array Ventures and prominent angels and aviation buffs, including John and Patrick Collison, founders of Stripe, as well as Nat Friedman of Xamarin, Microsoft, and GitHub.
“Aviation is currently undergoing what will be a seismic shift,” says Marc Piette, Xwing Founder and CEO. “In the not-so-distant future, technology will dramatically change the way people and goods move and transform transportation as a whole. Xwing has brought together experts in optionally-piloted vehicles, unmanned systems, and certified avionics, to develop key autonomous flight technology and accelerate this change.”
Founded in 2016, Xwing is focused on building the technologies necessary for fully-autonomous flight of smaller, cost-effective passenger aircraft. These include the key functions of autonomous flight – sensing, reasoning, and control – and the development and integration of technologies for rotorcraft, general aviation fixed-wing, and new emerging electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for each of these capabilities.
“The coming wave of eVTOLs coupled with the high-cost structure of the commercial aviation industry makes the timing perfect for autonomy,” says Vic Singh, Founding General Partner, Eniac Ventures. “We are excited to support Marc and Xwing. We believe they are the best, most experienced team and have built the leading technology platform to make intelligent autonomous aviation a reality.”
Xwing’s perception technology uses a suite of sensors to allow aircraft to perceive their surroundings. The input from these sensors is algorithmically fused to reliably detect ground-based and airborne hazards and precisely determine the vehicle’s position.
The company’s Autonomy Flight Management System (AFMS) enables the aircraft to then act upon the information from its surroundings. It will integrate with air traffic control, generate flight paths to seamlessly navigate the airspace, monitor system health, and address all contingencies to ensure passenger safety.
“Removing the need for a pilot will have a significant impact in opening up the aviation market,” says Xwing CEO Piette in a blog post introducing the company. “It allows for substantial decrease in vehicle operating costs, increase in operational efficiency for network operations, and it opens up the market for private ownership significantly.”
“We see a bright future where people and places are ever more connected,” he says, “where small aircraft can finally take their rightful place in the transportation landscape, and where autonomous flight will have a profound impact on society as we know it.”
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