Xpeng Aeroht, a subsidiary of EV maker Xpeng, has raked in $150 million in a Series B1 funding round as the firm looks to kickstart preorders for its modular flying car in Q4 this year and start deliveries to consumers in Q4 2025.
Xpeng Aeroht did not disclose investor details, according to a company release on Monday.
The fresh capital will help to finance the R&D, mass production, and commercialisation of Xpeng Aeroht’s modular flying car—an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle that can autonomously toggle between ground and aerial modes.
The Civil Aviation Administration of Central and Southern China (CAAC) accepted the Type Certificate (TC) application of the modular flying car in March.
In July, the firm announced plans to set up a flying car R&D and manufacturing facility in Guangzhou, which will be initially used to produce the flight module of the modular flying car.
Founded in 2013, Xpeng Aeroht’s flying car prototype made its debut test flight three years after its inception. The firm had sealed an undisclosed investment from its existing backer Rockets Capital in June 2022.
A report published by McKinsey & Company in January said China could be the first country where commercial eVTOLs take off. In March, Chinese drone maker EHang Holdings started selling its EH216-S model flying taxi for 2.39 million yuan ($332,060) on the e-commerce platform Taobao, as per a Reuters report.
EHang was granted the first-ever Production Certificate (PC) by CAAC in April, after receiving the TC and the Standard Airworthiness Certificate (AC) for its EH216-S model, marking another step ahead for the Nasdaq-listed drone maker. The PC enables eVTOL companies to commence mass production and commercial operations of their eVTOL aircraft.
