Joby Aviation’s NYC Air Taxi Test Flight Is Proving Flying Cars Are Real
Joby Aviation has completed its first New York City air taxi test, signalling that flying cars are moving closer to reality.
2 min
As the song “New York, New York” made famous by Frank Sinatra puts it, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.
That’s what Joby Aviation is hoping. Its stock is rising in early trading on Monday following Joby’s announcement that it had completed the first point-to-point air taxi demonstration in New York City. The flight was the first in a week-long series of test flights.
Joby stock rose 6.4% on Monday, closing at $9.04, while the S&P 500 rose 0.1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%.
Joby’s aircraft left JFK Airport and landed at multiple sites across the city’s existing heliport network, including Downtown Skyport and the West 30th Street and East 34th Street heliports in Midtown, according to the news release.
The flights are part of the electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL, Integration Pilot Program, or eIPP, launched by the Transportation Department in 2025 to accelerate the development and adoption of air taxis.
Joby and its peers are working on eVTOLs, which are quieter and easier to operate than traditional helicopters, opening up potential urban air taxi markets. Urban air taxis are why Joby’s products are sometimes called flying cars.
Coming into Monday trading, Joby stock was down 36% year to date, but up 31% over the past 12 months.
Shares have been volatile . Joby doesn’t generate sales yet and trades largely on news flow related to aircraft certification and the start of commercial service in the Middle East. Both are expected in late 2026.
Middle East sentiment appears to be weighing on shares. Joby stock was down about 16% since fighting broke out in Iran.
Wall Street expects the company to post roughly $110 million in sales in 2026. Sales are projected to rise to $1.1 billion by 2029 and $2 billion by 2030. Predicting aircraft certification and demand has been hard for analysts. Three years ago, the 2029 sales estimate was closer to $3 billion.
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All three vehicles will form part of a broader charitable initiative benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, the American Red Cross and Starlight Children’s Foundation
All three vehicles will form part of a broader charitable initiative benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, the American Red Cross and Starlight Children’s Foundation
2 minLuxury-car collaborations can feel little more than a logo exercise. Porsche’s latest project takes a more committed route, translating three of Pixar’s most recognisable characters into individual, road-going 911s.
Created through Porsche’s Sonderwunsch customisation program for the premiere of Toy Story 5, the trio draws on Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Jessie. Each is a genuine one-off rather than a limited colour package, with its character expressed through paint, materials and bespoke detailing.
The exercise is deliberately playful, but it also demonstrates the depth of Porsche’s factory personalisation capabilities. Sonderwunsch—German for “special wishes”—allows clients and the marque to create highly individual vehicles using the resources and standards of the manufacturer itself.
Woody’s car is expected to lean into the character’s western palette; Buzz offers the obvious opportunity for white, green and purple; and Jessie brings a bolder cowgirl identity. The success of the designs rests on suggestion rather than costume: the cars still need to look like coherent Porsches when separated from the film premiere.
All three vehicles will form part of a broader charitable initiative benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, the American Red Cross and Starlight Children’s Foundation. Porsche has said the cars will be sold, although the precise auction mechanism, timing and beneficiary allocation should be confirmed before publication.
For collectors, provenance is unusually strong. Each car combines one-of-one factory status, the cultural reach of Disney and Pixar, and an association with a major film release. That may give the trio appeal extending beyond conventional Porsche circles.
The project is also a reminder that the highest end of automotive customisation is increasingly about narrative. Performance specifications remain important, but for collectors who already have access to rare machinery, the story of why a car exists can be the feature that cannot be duplicated.
Fact box
– Cars: Three one-off Porsche 911s
– Inspiration: Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Jessie from Toy Story 5
– Creator: Porsche Sonderwunsch
– Purpose: Charitable sale initiative
– Beneficiaries: Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, American Red Cross and Starlight Children’s Foundation
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