Joby accuses Archer of trade-secret theft in escalating eVTOL rivalry

Joby Aviation has filed a lawsuit in California’s Santa Cruz County Superior Court accusing rival Archer Aviation of corporate espionage and theft of trade secrets. The complaint states that Archer hired Joby’s former US state and local policy lead, George Kivork, who shortly before resigning allegedly downloaded dozens of confidential files and forwarded some to his personal email.

Reuters reports that the leaked documents included business strategies, partnership terms, aircraft specifications and vertiport-development plans. Joby alleges Archer used this information to interfere with an exclusive infrastructure deal involving a real-estate developer. Archer has denied the allegations, calling the suit unfounded and an attempt to stifle competition.

Inc. Magazine notes that the filing describes the conduct as 'premeditated corporate espionage.' Both firms are major competitors in the electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft space — an emerging sector racing toward commercial air-taxi operations, defence partnerships and global vertiport development.

Joby, backed by Toyota, has advanced partnerships in air-taxi integration, while Archer has secured aircraft orders and real-estate agreements and previously settled a trade-secret case with Wisk Aero. Analysts say the new lawsuit highlights growing tensions between fast-moving eVTOL companies as they vie for regulatory approval, public-private partnerships and access to high-value urban infrastructure.

The case underscores how intellectual-property disputes are becoming central to the aviation-tech sector, where proprietary aircraft designs, flight-control software and infrastructure blueprints can shape commercial viability. Joby is seeking monetary damages and a court injunction to prevent further use of the disputed information. Archer maintains it will challenge the allegations.