Joby Aviation (NYSE:JOBY) raised its 2026 revenue guidance after a record third quarter for its Blade passenger business, while executives outlined plans to advance electric air taxi certification and pursue early commercial flights in 2027.
The company reported third-quarter revenue of $55 million, primarily from Blade, up from $39 million in the second quarter. Joby now expects full-year revenue of $135 million to $140 million, compared with its previous forecast of $115 million to $125 million.
Certification and early passenger flights
Founder and Chief Executive Officer JoeBen Bevirt said Joby completed a range of tests that earn credit toward Federal Aviation Administration certification during the quarter. The tests covered components including the fuselage, propeller hubs, tail and tilt actuators, he said.
Joby is in the fifth and final stage of the type certification process. Chief Policy Officer Greg Bowles said the next major phase is Type Inspection Authorization, or TIA, when FAA pilots begin flying the aircraft for credit toward certification.
Before those flights begin, Bevirt said FAA pilots will train on Joby’s aircraft and the company will complete its own flight testing on the relevant aircraft. He expects both milestones in the first half of 2027.
Bowles said the company plans to fly multiple aircraft simultaneously to help expedite TIA testing, but did not provide a specific duration. He said the FAA’s decisions about which tests its pilots will fly and which it will delegate will help establish the schedule once testing begins.
Joby also sees a path to early commercial passenger flights through the U.S. eVTOL Integration Pilot Program, known as eIPP. Bowles said those flights would be tied to substantial TIA flight testing. The company has conducted demonstrations in Texas and Florida, and executives cited New York as another potential market under the program.
In Dubai, Bevirt said Joby plans to begin operational flight testing with a pilot on board across its vertiport network later in 2026. He added that the second vertiport in the network is complete.
Blade growth and production
Blade flew more than 44,000 passengers in the third quarter, its highest quarterly total, Bevirt said. Passengers on its New York airport service rose 61% from a year earlier, while new airport passengers more than doubled.
Blade CEO Rob Wiesenthal said special events, including the World Cup, helped generate demand for flights as traffic increased. He said Blade also launched a Westchester route and increased flight frequency for John F. Kennedy International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport.
Wiesenthal said Blade’s Uber platform relationship had not yet started and that the passenger growth reported so far was organic. Bevirt said Joby was interested in adding its electric aircraft to Blade’s New York service under eIPP in 2027.
On manufacturing, Bevirt said Joby had released work orders to begin its 18th production aircraft on the Marina manufacturing line, which would be the 23rd Joby aircraft produced at the site. Output across eight core manufacturing shops rose 37% from the first to the third quarter, while the proportion of articles with a recorded non-conformance fell 38%, he said.
Cash position and defense expansion
Joby reported a third-quarter net loss of $212 million, compared with $245 million in the prior quarter. Brumana said much of the improvement came from a $53 million favorable noncash change in the fair value of warrants, earnout shares and contingent consideration. The company’s adjusted EBITDA loss widened to $208 million from $197 million.
The company ended the quarter with approximately $2.2 billion in cash equivalents and short-term investments, including about $128 million in net proceeds from its at-the-market equity program. Excluding those proceeds, use of cash equivalents and short-term investments was approximately $195 million, down from $202 million in the second quarter.
Joby maintained its forecast for second-half cash use of $385 million to $415 million. Brumana also said the company expects the second $250 million tranche of Toyota’s investment in the first half of 2027, subject to closing conditions.
Separately, Joby said it had expanded its autonomy-focused contracts with the U.S. Air Force to approximately $37 million. The company also plans to acquire defense technology business Resonant Sciences. Bevirt said he expects the transaction to close before Joby’s next results call, subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.
Resonant had more than $100 million in trailing 12-month revenue as of July 2026, according to Bevirt. Executive Chairman Paul Sciarra said Joby would update its broader guidance when the acquisition closes rather than provide a combined revenue forecast in advance.
About Joby Aviation (NYSE:JOBY)
Joby Aviation, Inc is an aerospace company developing all-electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for commercial passenger transportation. Its aircraft are designed to take off and land vertically like a helicopter while operating with the range and speed of a conventional aircraft, supporting quiet, low-emission air taxi services and other urban and regional transportation applications.
Founded in 2009 by JoeBen Bevirt, Joby is pursuing the certification, production and commercial deployment of its piloted aircraft.
