Flying car developer Terrafugia unlikely to positively impact Geely's bottom line

August 15, 2018 | Case Study

Enabled by the commercialization of Li-ion batteries for electric vehicles, the increasing technical feasibility of flying cars and air taxis presents a potential growth opportunity for traditional automakers. In November 2017, China's Geely, parent company of Volvo and The London Taxi Company, acquired U.S. flying car developer Terrafugia and became the first automotive OEM to have a public flying car division. Yet while Terrafugia was one of the more experienced startups in the space, its primary product for a 2019 release, the Transition, operated on automotive-grade gasoline, required a runway for takeoff, and had minimal autonomous capabilities – all qualities that ran counter to the industry trends driving the flying car space.