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Toyota Invests Additional $500 Million in Joby Aviation

Tetsuo "Ted" Ogawa and JoeBen Bevirt shake hands.

Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota; NYSE: TM) and Joby Aviation, Inc. (Joby; NYSE:JOBY) announced on October 2, 2024 that Toyota will invest an additional $500 million to support the certification and commercial production of Joby's electric air taxi, with the aim of realizing the two companies' shared vision of air mobility.

The investment will bring Toyota Motor Corporation's total investment in Joby to $894 million. The investment will be made in the form of cash for common stock. Further details of the investment are available via the companies' regulatory filings with the SEC.

Joby x Toyota eVTOL craft

"Today's investment builds on nearly seven years of collaboration between our companies," said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO, Joby Aviation. "The knowledge and support shared by Toyota have been instrumental in Joby's success and we look forward to deepening our relationship as we deliver on our shared vision for the future of air travel."

Joby continues to make significant progress towards commercialization. The company rolled out its third aircraft off its pilot production line in Marina, California, and broke ground on an expanded facility in California which more than doubles the Company's manufacturing footprint. In August 2024, it confirmed that the fourth of five stages of the type certification process is now more than one-third complete on the Joby side.

"With this additional investment, we are excited to see Joby certify their aircraft and shift to commercial production," said Tetsuo "Ted" Ogawa, who signed the agreement as the Operating Officer on behalf of Toyota Motor Corporation. "We share Joby's view that sustainable flight will be central to alleviating today's persistent mobility challenges."

According to the press release, Toyota's additional investment reflect the continued aim of Toyota Motor Corporation's founding family, starting with Kiichiro Toyoda down to present-day Chairman Akio Toyoda, to realize the dream of air mobility for personal or daily travel as part of its transformation into a mobility company.

Toyota has been investing time, money, and human resources with Joby ever since Toyota Ventures’ initial investment in Joby in 2017. Joby utilizes Toyota’s Production System via process planning, manufacturing method development, tooling design and Toyota’s engineers. The two companies signed a long-term agreement in 2023 for Toyota to supply key powertrain and actuation components for the production of Joby's aircraft.

About Joby
Joby Aviation, Inc. (NYSE:JOBY) is a California-based transportation company developing an all-electric, vertical take-off and landing air taxi which it intends to operate as part of a fast, quiet, and convenient service in cities around the world. To learn more, visit www.jobyaviation.com

About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands, and directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America (more than 49,000 in the U.S.).

Over the past 65 years, Toyota has assembled nearly 47 million cars and trucks in North America at the company's 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, the company's 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. 

Through our more than 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.), Toyota sold more than 2.6 million cars and trucks (more than 2.2 million in the U.S.) in 2023, of which more than one quarter were electrified vehicles (full battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell). 

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.