Picture the last time you sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic staring at a 12-mile commute that somehow took 55 minutes. Now imagine covering that same distance in six minutes, 1,500 feet above the gridlock, in an aircraft quieter than a dishwasher. That’s the pitch of eVTOLs, electric vertical takeoff and landing craft (or “air taxis” more colloquially).
The eVTOL industry spent a decade in the wilderness of prototypes and PowerPoint renderings. What's changed is that the FAA is now actively signing off. The agency has created an entirely new aircraft classification: "powered-lift." This is the first new category since helicopters in the 1940s.
In March 2026, the DOT and FAA selected eight projects across 26 states for the inaugural eVTOL Integration Pilot Program, allowing pre-certified electric aircraft to fly in commercial airspace—a legal first in U.S. aviation history. Congress has introduced the bipartisan Aviation Innovation and Global Competitiveness Act to accelerate FAA timelines. And in China, EHang is already selling tickets.
This report highlights the top eVTOL stocks to watch, grouped by their role in the value chain.
Certification Front-Runners
The FAA's type certification process has five stages. No eVTOL company has completed it yet. These two are the closest, and their race to Stage 5 is the single most important catalyst in the sector.
- Joby Aviation (NYSE: JOBY) is the furthest along as the only eVTOL maker to reach Stage 4 of the five-stage certification process. FAA test pilots are expected to fly the aircraft in 2026. Joby's approach is vertically integrated: it designs, manufactures, and intends to operate the aircraft as a transportation service, not just sell hardware. Toyota has committed $894 million in total, making it Joby's largest shareholder and manufacturing partner. Joby recently acquired the passenger business of Blade Air Mobility, giving it existing routes and infrastructure to convert to electric service on day one. The company raised ~$1.2 billion in February 2026 through a stock-and-convertible-note offering, bringing total liquidity past $2.6 billion. The tradeoff: shares outstanding have climbed past 900 million from 604 million at its public debut.
- Archer Aviation (NYSE: ACHR) is Joby's closest rival but runs a different playbook. Where Joby wants to be the "Uber of the skies," Archer is happy staying as the OEM. It builds its Midnight aircraft (four passengers, 100-mile range, 10-minute recharge) and sells or leases them to operators, and its Georgia manufacturing facility can produce up to 650 aircraft per year. Archer holds a $6 billion backlog from United Airlines, Abu Dhabi Aviation, and others, and has been named the official air taxi partner for the 2028 LA Olympics. To anchor its LA network, Archer acquired Hawthorne Airport, an 80-acre site three miles from LAX, for $126 million. Cash is north of $2 billion after an $850 million raise, but some analysts don't expect full FAA certification until 2028. The gap between ambition and execution is the stock's central tension.
- Rather than chasing urban air taxis from day one, BETA Technologies (NYSE: BETA) is certifying a conventional fixed-wing electric aircraft (the CX300) first, with its VTOL variant to follow. The CX300 is already flying: it completed the first coast-to-coast flight by an all-electric aircraft, carried the first passengers into JFK, and achieved 98% dispatch reliability during a U.S. Air Force deployment. BETA IPO'd in November 2025 at $34 per share, raising over $1 billion, backed by Amazon, GE Aerospace, and BlackRock. Crucially, BETA has built a nationwide charging network with 50+ sites and struck a $1 billion, 10-year deal to supply electric motors to Eve Air Mobility. Revenue was $35.6 million in 2025, up 136% year-over-year.
International Contenders
The FAA gets most of the attention in the U.S., but eVTOL certification is a global race. These three companies are backed by major aerospace houses and/or targeting non-U.S. markets where regulatory timelines may prove more forgiving.
- EHang (NASDAQ: EH) is the global leader in pilotless eVTOL. Its EH216-S received full type, production, and airworthiness certificates from China's CAAC—the world's first for an autonomous passenger aircraft. EHang delivered 221 units in FY2025, posted record revenue of ~$73 million, and achieved its first GAAP-profitable quarter in Q4. It launched ticketed commercial sightseeing flights in March 2026. The bear case is geographic: nearly all revenue comes from China, and Western regulators remain deeply skeptical of pilotless passenger flight. But China's government is backing the "low-altitude economy" with billions in infrastructure spending, and EHang is the incumbent.
- Eve Air Mobility (NYSE: EVEX), spun out of Embraer, carries 56 years of aerospace manufacturing pedigree. Eve completed the first flight of its full-scale prototype in December 2025 and is working toward Brazilian certification, with service entry targeted for 2027. Its design is deliberately simple: lower maintenance, lower certification risk. Eve's backlog stands at roughly 3,000 units, and it has $1.2 billion in total funding. A slow-and-steady contender that may benefit from the delays hitting faster-moving rivals.
- Vertical Aerospace (NYSE: EVTL) is the UK's entry. In December 2025 the company unveiled "Valo," its refined production-intent design. Vertical has ~1,500 pre-orders from American Airlines, Japan Airlines, and Bristow. But certification has slipped repeatedly (originally 2024, now 2028), a 2023 prototype crash forced a testing pause, and the company estimates it needs $700 million more to reach certification (against $139 million in cash). Higher risk, but its Tier 1 supplier network and UK/Japan positioning keep it on the map.
Private Bellwethers
These are the companies you can't yet buy on a public exchange, but whose trajectories will shape the industry. Watch them as acquisition targets, IPO candidates, or competitive signals.
- Wisk Aero (wholly owned by Boeing) is the only Western company designing a fully autonomous, pilotless eVTOL for commercial passenger service. Its Generation 6 aircraft completed its maiden flight in December 2025, with a second prototype rolled out in March 2026. Wisk has flown six generations of aircraft over 1,750 test flights, more developmental iterations than any competitor. Launch cities include Houston, LA, and Miami, targeting commercial service before 2030.
- Electra.aero, while technically not building an eVTOL, is pursuing a hybrid-electric aircraft that takes off in as little as 150 feet—the length of a soccer field—while offering 10x the range and 2.5x the payload of a pure eVTOL. Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works signed a collaboration agreement in 2025 to accelerate both defense and civilian use. Electra has surpassed 2,000 pre-orders valued at over $8 billion and, because it certifies as a conventional airplane rather than a new aircraft category, its regulatory path is simpler. Commercial launch is targeted for 2028.
- Skyports Infrastructure is building the ground layer: designing, developing, and operating vertiports for the entire eVTOL ecosystem. It manages the London Heliport and is partnering with Joby, Vertical, and others on launch networks globally. If eVTOLs become a real transportation mode, vertiport operators become toll collectors.
Signals to Watch
For those tracking eVTOL stocks, here are the near-term catalysts that matter:
- The first FAA type certificate. Joby is the frontrunner. The moment the FAA issues a type certificate to any eVTOL maker, it validates the sector for every name on this list.
- eIPP operational flights. The eight projects selected in March 2026 are expected to begin within 90 days. Revenue cargo flights could arrive by Q4 2026, the first time electric aircraft operate commercially in U.S. airspace.
- Cash runway vs. certification timeline. Joby has ~$2.6 billion after its February 2026 raise. Archer has ~$2 billion. BETA raised $1 billion at IPO. But all three front-runners are burning $300–500+ million per year, and certification delays are measured in years, not quarters. Further dilution is a matter of when, not if.
- The 2028 LA Olympics. The FAA's "Innovate28" plan targets eVTOL operations at scale for the Games. This is a de facto federal deadline that concentrates regulatory, infrastructure, and political will. Archer is the named air taxi partner.
- Battery density improvements. Current lithium-ion packs limit most eVTOLs to 20–40 minutes of flight. The jump to solid-state or lithium-sulfur batteries (400+ Wh/kg) would dramatically expand range and payload. EHang's recent cross-strait flight used a solid-state battery co-developed with Inx Energy, an early signal.
- Consolidation. Lilium and Volocopter are both insolvent. Archer bought Lilium's patents. Joby acquired Blade. BETA is selling motors to Eve. The sector is consolidating fast, and the companies that survive will inherit the IP, infrastructure, and talent of those that don't.
The aviation industry created exactly two categories of civil aircraft in the entire 20th century: the airplane and the helicopter. We are now adding a third.
The regulatory framework is built and the manufacturing lines are running. Now, it’s a full-blown race between certification speed and cash burn.