Archer Aviation is buying three of Boeing’s aerospace subsidiaries: autonomous air-taxi developer Wisk Aero, military drone maker Insitu, and airspace-software firm SkyGrid. The deal also hands Boeing a stake in Archer.
Investors loved it. Archer (ACHR) stock jumped more than 20% on Monday, and the acquisition instantly turns a pre-revenue eVTOL startup into a company with a profitable defense business behind it.
It could accelerate Archer’s eVTOL plans.
What Archer is buying
Insitu is the prize. It’s a defense drone maker generating over $200 million in annual revenue, it’s profitable, and it has built more than 3,500 uncrewed aircraft systems fielded by the armed forces of 35 nations.
Wisk Aero is the autonomous eVTOL developer Boeing has bankrolled for years. Archer says it’s the only company to design, build, and fly six generations of eVTOL aircraft, with more than 1,700 flight tests. SkyGrid rounds out the deal with aircraft-agnostic air traffic management software.
Financial terms weren’t disclosed. Boeing isn’t only selling here. It’s taking a stake in Archer and entering a technology-sharing collaboration, though no purchase price, investment amount, or equity percentage was announced. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2026, pending antitrust review.
The “physical AI” pitch
Archer is selling this as a bet on “physical AI.” The company says combining autonomy, eVTOL aircraft, and drones creates “an end-to-end physical AI platform for aerospace and defense,” all feeding into Archer’s own AI foundation model, ZEE.
“This is a watershed moment for Archer and the future of physical AI in aerospace and defense,” said founder and CEO Adam Goldstein. “This is the next big step forward in becoming a diversified platform.”
Boeing kept its framing simpler. “This transaction is a win-win for Boeing and Archer,” said Brian Yutko, Boeing’s VP of Commercial Airplanes Product Development. “It allows Wisk, SkyGrid and Insitu to accelerate capability development and time to market.”
The move accelerates a defense pivot Archer started in late 2024, when it partnered with Anduril to build a hybrid VTOL military aircraft and raised $430 million. Last month, the two unveiled Thunder, a jointly developed autonomous VTOL aircraft for defense and commercial missions. Insitu gives that ambition real revenue and real contracts instead of renderings.
Archer’s core business keeps moving in the meantime. It began piloted operations of its flagship Midnight aircraft last year, and it’s the exclusive air taxi provider for the 2028 LA Olympics.
The rivals who used to sue each other
There’s history here. Wisk sued Archer in 2021, accusing it of stealing trade secrets, in a bitter multi-year court fight. The two settled on August 10, 2023, with Boeing investing in Archer’s funding round and the companies agreeing to collaborate on autonomy.
That settlement was exactly three years ago today. Now Archer owns Wisk outright.
Electrek’s Take
The “physical AI” branding is doing a lot of work. Every startup slaps AI on a press release now, and Archer is no exception. But strip the buzzword and the logic holds up. Archer just bought its way from pre-revenue promise to a real defense business with $200 million in revenue and drones flying in 35 countries.
For a company that has burned cash for years chasing FAA certification, buying Insitu’s profitable, cash-generating business changes the entire company overnight. It steadies the balance sheet with real manufacturing and contracts, which until now were mostly a splashy unveiling and a stock pop.
I think there’s a real chance that it will accelerate the advent of eVTOLs, but I remain skeptical. I would keep a close eye on Archer becoming more focused on its new defense business, which I don’t really care for, at the detriment of its promise of commercial electric flight.
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