Lilium raises 224 million euros for the development of an electric air taxi

The German start-up Lilium has raised more than 224 million euros during an internal investment round. The company wants to market a vertical take-off electric air taxi and has already completed several test flights.

Munich-based Lilium reports that more than 224 million have been raised, bringing the total amount of money raised so far to about 317 million euros. The recent investment round was led by China’s Tencent, in partnership with other investors such as Atomico, Freigeist and LGT.

According to Lilium, founded in 2015, the sum of money will be used to further develop the Lilium Jet. The investments will also be used for the preparations for taking the aircraft into series production. Lilium is developing and manufacturing the aircraft, but also plans to use the aircraft for its own regional taxi service, which should start in early 2025 in several regions of the world.

At the end of last year, Lilium showed images of a full test flight. During that successful flight, the ability to take off and land vertically was demonstrated, and during a later flight the aircraft has already reached a speed of 100 km/h. The Lilium Jet should eventually be able to transport five people over a distance of 300 km in sixty minutes. A pilot will still be present, so that a maximum of four passengers can travel.

The Lilium Jet is powered by 36 electric motors on its wings. The company describes the motors as ‘ducted fans’. They are fully electric motors that blow air out, so that a force is exerted on the device in the opposite direction. Since the engines can tilt, horizontal flying is also possible after vertical take-off.