Embraer’s Aerial Mobility Future Is Now Called Eve

Embraer announced the formation of Eve Urban Air Mobility Solutions, Inc. (Eve) on October 15th. Eve is an independent company dedicated to accelerating the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) ecosystem, according to Embraer’s press release.

The announcement characterizes Eve as more than just a eVTOL manufacturer – the company is developing a full portfolio of solutions to enable the UAM market. One component of that development is the progression and certification of the company’s electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle (eVTOL), in addition to the associated services/support network, and the creation of urban air traffic management solutions.

André Stein, former head of strategy for EmbraerX, has been appointed CEO of Eve. The company was incubated for four years within EmbraerX. “We value the vast potential of the UAM market, as it represents a new business segment in which we foresee significant opportunities for Embraer. Innovation and diversification are key pillars of Embraer’s new strategic plan, which will increase revenue and improve profitability over the next few years,” said Francisco Gomes Neto, President and CEO of Embraer. “That is why I am eager to announce Eve, the first company to graduate from EmbraerX.

EmbraerX has been part of the Uber Elevate Network since its inception in 2017, as part of the company’s initiative to accelerate the UAM revolution, “Eve’s launch is an important next step in commercializing Embraer’s eVTOL designs while building on Embraer’s ability to design, certify, and deliver safe, globally-accepted aircraft. We look forward to our continued partnership to make aerial ridesharing a reality,” said Eric Allison, Head of Uber Elevate.

Eve’s eVTOL design is “human-centered” and represents an actual, certifiable product development – the first flight of the engineering simulator occurred in June of 2020. and the company is harnessing the expertise of both Embraer and Atech, a subsidiary of the Embraer Group, in providing globally-recognized air traffic management software to create the solutions that will help safely scale the UAM industry going forward.

More information on the company may be found at www.eveairmobility.com.

Why it’s important: Embraer’s formal spinoff of Eve creates a deliberate segmentation of the larger commercial aircraft manufacturer from the aerial mobility offerings of the future. The full stack approach to mobility infrastructure development is a unique approach toward bringing an eVTOL to market, one that requires a greater resource pool and technical, business, and infrastructure know-how. Fortunately, Embraer’s vast experience will aid in deploying this longer term goal of an aerial mobility ecosystem, but partnerships between Eve and companies such as Atech and the Uber Elevate Network will further aid the progression toward initial certification and on-demand commercial deployment of aerial mobility services.

Read the full press release here.