Flying cars have hovered in the public imagination since The Jetsons. But the techno-optimism of the space age has since given way to a more jaded cultural milieu, captured by financier Peter Thiel's Founders Fund 2011 manifesto, subtitled, "We Wanted Flying Cars, Instead We Get 140 Characters." But in 2026, there may be room for cautious optimism.
Advanced air mobility (AAM) encompasses a range of aviation technologies and operational uses, though much of the attention has focused on electric vertical takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft for commercial air taxi services. Developers pitch their eVTOL air taxis as far cheaper to operate than traditional helicopters. While AAM has yet to be commercialized, a few eVTOL aircraft developers are deep into regulatory certification with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and its international counterparts. Both the AAM industry and the U.S. government are aiming for a 2028 launch of commercial air taxi operations, in time to showcase them at the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
