Archer Aviation Inc. has formed a new agreement to supply its proprietary dual-use electric powertrain technology to Anduril Industries and EDGE Group.
This marks the first time Archer will make its advanced powertrain technology, which is currently used in its Midnight eVTOL aircraft, available to a third party, creating a new revenue stream for the company.
The technology will be used to accelerate the development and scaled production of Anduril’s recently unveiled Omen Autonomous Air Vehicle system. The Omen system, which is a hover-to-cruise Autonomous Air Vehicle, will be co-developed and co-produced by Anduril and EDGE Group in the UAE, with the UAE committing to an initial acquisition of 50 Omen systems.
Archer has invested significantly in developing its electric powertrain, optimizing it for a range of commercial and defense aviation use-cases. This expansion into supplying electric powertrains for defense applications builds on the company’s accumulated experience in battery and electric engine technologies.
Archer manufactures its electric powertrain in the U.S. across nearly 1,000,000 square feet of manufacturing and test facilities, using automation in key areas of the manufacturing process to ensure reliable and scaled production.
Adam Goldstein, founder and CEO of Archer, stated, “While most see our Midnight eVTOL as an aircraft, we view Midnight as a platform that plays host to a wide range of new and exciting aerospace technologies that will be leveraged way beyond our own aircraft.
“Our powertrain deal with Anduril is the first of what we expect to be many examples of this. For almost a year, we have worked closely with Anduril’s team as we advance our hybrid-electric aircraft project. As we’ve familiarized ourselves with each other’s technology, new and interesting opportunities to collaborate beyond the scope of the initial hybrid aircraft project have been uncovered. We could not be more excited to expand the scope of our partnership with Anduril as we open up a new revenue stream for Archer’s business as a powertrain supplier for next-generation electric aircraft.”
Shane Arnott, Anduril’s SVP of Engineering, added, “We’ve been working on Omen for more than five years. By combining the Archer team’s expertise in powertrain technology with a little bit of Anduril magic, we’ve been able to mature our propulsion solution to achieve the ranges, speeds, and payload capacity we need to make Omen operationally relevant for a variety of dual-use mission sets. The maturity and reliability of Archer’s powertrain platform de-risks our plans to deliver a production variant of Omen to customers at scale.”
The deal highlights the potential value of Archer’s core technology and the importance of its strategic decision to vertically integrate the design and manufacturing of its battery pack, resulting in a solution that meets rigorous safety, performance and reliability standards for aviation use cases.
Archer’s Midnight aircraft is a piloted vehicle designed to carry four passengers and perform rapid, back-to-back trips with minimal charge time. Midnight is potentially able to replace 60-90-minute commutes by car with 10-20-minute electric air taxi flights that are safe, sustainable, low-noise and cost-competitive with ground transportation.
The company has been active in international deals tied to the Midnight eVTOL, including an exclusive agreement with Korean Air to commercialize Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) technology and selections in Osaka and Tokyo, Japan, to lead AAM deployments with its local partner.
