“Where’s my flying car?” is a key element of Gen X humor, as it reaffirms the skeptical view that technology often fails to deliver on its lofty promises.
Until recently, electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles were mostly in our imaginations. I could name more movies with flying cars than eVTOL companies, but that is changing. The industry has gone from speculative to competitive in the blink of an eye, thanks in large part to advances like composite materials and battery density. And investors are strongly interested.
Last year, boosters poured billions of dollars into eVTOL as companies like Joby Aviation, Archer and Lilium used SPAC to raise cash to fund R&D and test flight programs.
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In the column for TC +Ben Tigner, co-founder and CEO of electric mobility company Overair, has identified four trends that are changing the way investors, entrepreneurs and markets are responding to expanding opportunities in eVTOL:
- The competitive landscape is increasingly expanding
- The attention of the mainstream is increasing
- Emphasis on noise pollution
- Sustainable tourism takes the lead
“I have worked in aircraft development for decades, but 2021 is different,” Tigner wrote.
In January, we reported that Joby Aviation had asked the FCC for permission to conduct air taxi flights around attractions in San Francisco. When the time came, I was really curious to see how many of my friends would be interested in taking the Blade Runner-style tour of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.
I’m not good with heights, so I’ll look forward to seeing their videos.
Thanks so much for reading, and have a great weekend.
Walter Thompson
Senior Editor, TechCrunch +
@yourprot character
Tortoise co-founder Dmitry Shevelenko: ‘You can’t do too many things at once’
Image credits: Bryce Durbin
From the outside, a startup that creates multiple pivots may look like it lacks direction.
In fact, changing direction is often the smartest bet, as it allows founding teams to take advantage of new technology and adapt to changing market conditions.
Transportation reporter Rebecca Bellan interviewed Tortoise co-founder Dmitry Shevelenko about his company’s transition “from using a hardware-as-a-service model to the charging model that drives it 10% of sales from its card payment bots. ”
“The most important thing with agility is the ability to gracefully admit being wrong or that you’ve learned new information and are adapting,” says Shevelenko.
Dear Sophie: Is there an easier route to L-1A and STEM O-1A?
Image credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch
Dear Sophie,
I live in India and run a startup here, but most of my clients live in the US. I also have Delaware C Corp, which we founded before the pandemic.
We have three full-time contractors developing our business and sales in the United States, and I still have a valid B-1/B-2 visitor visa.
As my company continues to grow, I am considering coming to the US with my family and buying a home. What are my best options?
—Not in India
Don’t Buy Infringement or Bad Reputation: A More Effective Approach to M&A Due Diligence
Image credits: mohd izzuan (Opens in a new window) / Beautiful pictures
There are many layers to M&A due diligence, but none of that matters if you’re only determining liabilities after the deal closes.
One way to address this information shortage: start early and add open source intelligence – publicly available information from freely available and licensed sources – to the due diligence process.
The use of public data allows claimants to start the process early, and because it does not require sharing information or gaining access to the target company’s applications or networks, “primary reviews Heading can also be completed much faster than with traditional network due diligence, often within a period of a few weeks,” said David Etue, CEO of Nisos.
When should an early-stage startup hire a full-time attorney?
Image credits: malerapso (Opens in a new window) /Getty Images (Image has been modified)
Every company eventually needs legal advice, but when a few hours spent with an attorney costs as much as a shiny new laptop, most startups delay dealing with a lawyer until until absolutely necessary.
Kristen Corpio, founder of CORPlaw, says it’s best to consider hiring an in-house advisor when “it hurts a little bit – when you start to feel thin – rather than too early in your business’s lifecycle.” .
“Unlike some other roles that may need to be filled, you can find highly qualified outside attorneys to bridge the gap when you become in need of full-time support,” she writes.
How the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is set to start BNPL in 2022
Image credits: vchal (Opens in a new window) / Beautiful pictures
Integrating deferred payments with e-commerce has benefited keen consumers and aspiring sellers. But in the United States, regulators are rethinking BNPL’s expanding lending market.
In December 2021, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau asked 5 buyers now, pay the following suppliers to “gather information about the risks and benefits” of the payments. loans, citing concerns about debt accumulation, regulatory arbitrage, and data collection.
Yaacov Martin, CEO and co-founder of Jifiti, writes: The move is sure to set off a regulatory wave that “will level the playing field in the long term.”
Infrastructure bill could promote lean construction through data collection
Image credits: Who I am (Opens in a new window) / Beautiful pictures
There’s a lot of excitement about construction technology among investors and entrepreneurs, but general contractors aren’t nearly as excited.
At active job sites, safety, speed, and cost are top concerns, which makes it difficult to “ensure the organization-wide acquisition of new tools,” says Meirav Oren. , co-founder and CEO of Verspose, writes.
The recently passed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act contains $100 million in funding for construction technology, but companies hoping to accelerate adoption need to learn how to partner with contractors :
- Avoid weeklong training sessions
- Escape from trials and proof of concept
- Highlighting the benefits of human-centered technology
- Recognition of early adopters and pioneers
How to hire good engineers when you don’t have any technical expertise
Image credits: Jordan Lye (Opens in a new window) / Beautiful pictures
Recruiting startups is always difficult, but recruiting technical talent is harder than ever.
Hiring the wrong one can incur a serious technical debt: placing the wrong bet, and you may even have to restructure, is not something you want to explain in a board meeting.
Fortunately, smaller companies enjoy many advantages when it comes to hiring new employees, starting with the fact that they can shorten the typical interview process from a few weeks to a few days.
Marcelo Wiermann, global head of recommendation engineering at Delivery Hero, shares tactics for finding, attracting, evaluating and hiring good engineers, “even if you have zero knowledge. technical background”.
