Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation are developing electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft and related air-mobility businesses. Both remained development-stage, loss-making companies in their latest quarterly filings. A useful comparison therefore starts with certification evidence, liquidity and capital requirements, not a forecast of which stock must win.
Evidence date: financial figures and company certification statements below are from Forms 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, reviewed July 10, 2026. Company targets are forward-looking and are not FAA approvals.
Side-by-side records
| Measure | Joby Aviation | Archer Aviation |
|---|---|---|
| Aircraft focus | Piloted electric eVTOL intended for passenger service | Midnight piloted electric eVTOL intended for passenger service |
| U.S. type certification | Company said three of five internal stages were completed or substantially completed and it was more than halfway through stage four | Company said work toward FAA type certification of Midnight continued; the filing did not mean a type certificate had been issued |
| Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments | $2.467 billion at March 31, 2026 | $1.776 billion of cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments at March 31, 2026 |
| Q1 2026 net loss | $110.0 million | $217.7 million |
| Q1 2026 operating cash used | $144.4 million | $149.1 million |
| Commercial status | Targeting first passengers in 2026, subject to certification and execution | Reported limited revenue and remained pre-commercial for its core aircraft plan |
The categories are not perfectly comparable. Each company defines program milestones and business scope differently, and one quarter of cash use is not a reliable annual burn rate. Read the full statements and risk factors.
Certification is the central gate
The FAA describes aircraft certification as a multi-phase process ending with an issued type certificate for the design. Production approval, aircraft airworthiness and operational authority can require additional work. Prototype flights, a published certification basis, pilot-program selection or a company milestone percentage is not the same as completed type certification.
Joby's Q1 filing said its revised G-1 certification basis lays out the requirements and that it had completed or substantially completed three of five company-described stages, with stage four more than halfway complete. Archer's filing discussed continued work toward type certification and possible early activity through the eVTOL Integration Pilot Program. Neither statement should be converted into a guaranteed launch date.
For future updates, look for an FAA-issued approval or a precise company filing tied to an FAA document. Avoid treating a press release's progress percentage as directly comparable across companies.
Liquidity and dilution
Joby reported $2.467 billion in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at quarter end after substantial financing activity. Archer reported $1.776 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. Larger liquidity can provide more runway, but it does not establish future profitability.
Both companies expect further spending on engineering, testing, manufacturing and commercialization. Equity issuance, convertible debt, warrants and stock-based compensation can dilute existing shareholders or add claims on future cash. Compare fully diluted share exposure and financing terms, not only the cash balance.
A rough cash-runway calculation can be misleading because production equipment, acquisitions, customer payments and financing arrive unevenly. Use quarterly cash-flow statements, commitments and management's liquidity discussion instead of multiplying one quarter by four.
Operations and partnerships
Joby completed its acquisition of Blade's passenger business in 2025, adding operating relationships and an existing customer platform, but integration does not remove aircraft-certification risk. Archer disclosed plans around Hawthorne Airport and participation in government-backed pilot-program applications. These assets and relationships may support future networks, yet they also require capital and execution.
Orders, memoranda and partnerships should be classified by enforceability: binding purchase, conditional agreement, pre-delivery payment, option or nonbinding statement. Check cancellation rights, certification conditions and recognized revenue in the SEC filing. A large announced aircraft count is not equivalent to delivered aircraft or collected revenue.
A neutral investor checklist
Compare both companies on the same dated evidence:
- FAA documents and remaining approvals, not self-defined percentages alone.
- Cash and investments minus restricted amounts and major obligations.
- Operating cash use, capital expenditure and expected manufacturing spend.
- Fully diluted shares, warrants, converts and stock compensation.
- Revenue actually recognized versus conditional backlog or targets.
- Manufacturing capacity demonstrated at required quality and rate.
- Aircraft performance verified under certification conditions.
- Dependence on partners, suppliers, infrastructure and local operating approvals.
Principal risks
Certification may take longer or require redesign. Manufacturing can expose quality, supplier and cost problems. Demand, route economics, noise acceptance, pilot availability and infrastructure are not proven at commercial scale. Both companies may need more capital before sustainable operations, and their shares can be highly volatile.
Bottom line
The latest filings show that Joby entered Q2 2026 with more reported liquidity, while both companies used substantial operating cash and still faced certification and commercialization work. That is a starting point, not an investment recommendation. The better-supported conclusion is to monitor FAA-issued evidence, cash obligations and dilution each quarter rather than predict a winner from company targets.
