Archer to Acquire Boeing’s Wisk, SkyGrid and Insitu Units
The eVTOL maker said the deal will fold autonomy, UAS and airspace-intelligence businesses into its ZEE physical-AI platform, with Boeing taking a stake.
Archer Aviation Inc. (ACHR) said it has signed definitive agreements to acquire Boeing’s Wisk Aero, SkyGrid and Insitu subsidiaries, a combination the eVTOL maker described as an end-to-end physical AI platform for aerospace and defense.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions including expiration or termination of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period. Moelis & Company LLC is acting as financial advisor to Archer and Fenwick & West LLP as outside counsel; J.P. Morgan Securities LLC is advising Boeing, with Mayer Brown LLP as its counsel.
The deal will combine Wisk, Insitu and SkyGrid’s autonomy, electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, unmanned aircraft systems and airspace-intelligence technologies with Archer’s product suite and its purpose-built AI foundation model, ZEE. The three Boeing units have nearly two million combined flight hours, bringing a deep autonomy foundation to ZEE and positioning the company to deliver an end-to-end physical AI platform across commercial aerospace, defense and air traffic management.
Insitu has a product portfolio spanning VTOL-capable UAS and AI-enabled software, with technologies used by the armed forces of 35 nations. The company has manufactured and fielded more than 3,500 UAS and maintains operations and support networks in every hemisphere, with offices in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. The combined businesses add a profitable defense operation generating over $200 million in annual revenue, with operations across 35 countries.
Boeing is to take a stake in Archer and become a strategic partner, establishing an ongoing collaboration and technology-sharing arrangement. Archer’s founder and CEO Adam Goldstein said, “This is a watershed moment for Archer and the future of physical AI in aerospace and defense.”
The deal will combine complementary capabilities developed over decades in autonomy, eVTOL aircraft and UAS, bringing new solutions to market as Wisk, SkyGrid and Insitu’s incubated autonomous-flight technologies merge with Archer’s air-taxi, UAS and AI stack. Additional transaction details were available in Archer’s Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.