Astronics to Supply Low-Voltage Power Distribution System for Vertical Aerospace’s Valo eVTOL

A federal jury in Tampa, Florida, found that air taxi startup Joby Aviation owes roughly $116.9 million to aviation supplier Aerosonic after it allegedly breached a confidentiality agreement and mishandled trade secrets. The verdict, reached on October 2, breaks down into more than $48 million for misappropriating trade secrets and more than $68 million for breaking a nondisclosure agreement. Aerosonic, based in Clearwater, Florida, sued Joby last year after selling it air data probes that measure pressure around an aircraft, claiming Joby used its proprietary designs and data to develop its own probes in about two years, a process Aerosonic said would have taken around a decade without its trade secrets. Joby, based in Santa Cruz, denied the accusations and said it independently developed its air data system through years of its own engineering and manufacturing work, adding that it has asked the court to overturn the verdict and intends to pursue all available post-trial and appellate remedies. The jury also rejected a countersuit by Joby accusing Aerosonic of selling it defective probes, and the verdict is not finalized and remains subject to post-trial motions or appeals.

Hwa Create announced that the company and its wholly owned subsidiary Yijiahang plan to jointly invest with Zhifei Technology and Sanzhouyuan to establish Sichuan Kongyu Zhihang Technology Co., Ltd., with registered capital of 300 million yuan. Hwa Create will contribute intellectual property valued at 150 million yuan for a 50% stake; Yijiahang will contribute 70 million yuan in cash for a 23.33% stake; Zhifei Technology will contribute 75 million yuan in cash for a 25% stake; and Sanzhouyuan will contribute 5 million yuan in cash for a 1.67% stake. The investment aims to align with the low-altitude economy development strategy and extend the business chain into processing, manufacturing, and operational services.

Joby Aviation reported that its autonomy-equipped converted Cessna Caravan completed the first-ever fully autonomous 3,199-mile flight across the United States, remotely supervised from up to 2,323 miles away while autonomously handling taxi, takeoff, routing, and landing and integrating into busy airports. The cross-country mission, part of Joby's 2026 Electric Skies tour, highlights how the company's mature autonomy stack could underpin future freight, medical, disaster-response, and defense logistics operations on already-certified airframes. The milestone does not directly change the near-term certification catalyst for piloted air taxis or the key risk around elevated cash use and potential dilution. The announcement most connected to the milestone is Joby's recent S-1 filing for up to US$750 million of new equity, which underscores the near-term financing question around supporting certification, manufacturing ramp, and a broader autonomy roadmap. Joby's narrative projects $718.3 million revenue and $44.9 million earnings by 2029, requiring 83.5% yearly revenue growth and a $923.1 million earnings increase from -$878.2 million today, while more cautious analysts assumed about 141.5% annual revenue growth to roughly US$319.0 million by 2029.

Jiangte Motor announced on September 7, 2026 that its cooperation with the Shanghai Pudong New Area Academician and Expert Workstation Federation and academician teams has made progress. The parties held a project launch signing ceremony in Yichun, Jiangxi, reaching a series of agreements on the industrialization of electric propulsion systems for low-altitude aircraft. Specific progress includes: the establishment of the Low-Altitude Economy Collaborative Innovation Research Institute is advancing in an orderly manner; plans to jointly invest in a joint venture company through its wholly-owned subsidiary Jiangte High-Tech, the technical team, and Shanghai Guoke Shangfei Aviation Technology, with Jiangte Motor holding a 70% stake; launching the Yichun low-altitude flight camp project; and releasing a self-developed 800kg-class heavy-lift multi-rotor UAV high-voltage direct-drive power system, suitable for emergency rescue, energy infrastructure, low-altitude logistics and other scenarios. The company stated that the above matters are still in the startup stage, have not generated revenue, and will not affect this year's performance, and cautioned that there are uncertainties in the establishment of the research institute and industrialization company, product airworthiness certification, and market expansion.