MERLIN PROJECT RUNWAY SERIES
MERLIN PROJECT RUNWAY CRACK

As George explains, Merlin’s system is designed to receive verbal instructions from control towers, recognize and interpret the instructions and adjust flight instructions accordingly. One particularly unique aspect of Merlin’s product is its use of speech recognition to interface with air traffic controllers. He sees Merlin’s technology merely building on the autopilot systems that are ubiquitous in large commercial aircraft today, which often handle in-flight procedures as well as landing.Īs a fallback, pilots fly alongside Merlin’s system within equipped aircraft, George says, and their data is used to improve the system’s efficiency and safety. But George argues that autonomy in the air is easier than, say, the road because ground-based radar offers “complete vision” of nearly everything in the sky - at least in the U.S. The system performs actions using actuators connected to the plane, which are directed by the onboard flight computer.įlight is complex fatal crashes like Lion Air Flight 610 in 2018 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019 are sobering reminders of this. Merlin’s avionics system uses GPS, inertial navigation systems, air data, and altitude and heading reference systems to establish an aircraft’s current position and altitude. “The business case is relatively simple: in a world of increasing transportation costs and a global shortage of pilots, autonomy can help to ease the burden of cost on companies, and at the same time can increase safety for pilots themselves, who now have an always-on, alert, and intelligent robotic co-pilot within the airframe they’re already familiar with.” “We’re going to continue to achieve our certification milestones … e want to build on that record of trust and safety with the new funding,” George said. With Merlin, George - drawing on his experience as a pilot - hopes to make a softer landing. Bridj gained modest traction in Boston, Washington, D.C., and Austin before it ran out of runway, selling its assets, including the brand, to Australian company Transit Systems. George is a two-time founder, having previously launched Bridj, a platform that supports on-demand public transportation providers. “A core part of my interest in founding Merlin is to increase pilot safety and operational flexibility by adding autonomous systems to existing aircraft.” “Merlin was founded to define what’s possible in the next 100 years of aviation,” CEO Matt George told TechCrunch in an email interview. The round, announced today, was co-led by Snowpoint and Baillie Gifford with participation from GV (formerly Google Ventures) and brings Merlin’s total raised to $130 million.

MERLIN PROJECT RUNWAY SERIES

Air Force to retrofit the service’s C-130J Super Hercules cargo planes.Įvidently pleased with the progress, investors have poured significant capital into Merlin, driving the size of its Series B round to $105 million. Post-certification, Merlin landed partnerships with air fleet operators Dynamic Aviation and Ameriflight and branched into defense, revealing that it would supply its system to the U.S. In September, Merlin achieved approval from the FAA and New Zealand’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for its “certification basis” for autonomy system as part of a joint project between the FAA and CAA. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to provide commercial service. While Merlin told TechCrunch at the time that it had “hundreds” of test flights under its belt, the company’s system lacked certification from the U.S. Roughly a year ago, Boston-based Merlin Labs emerged from stealth with an autonomous flight system designed to be installed in existing aircraft. Xwing is one of the startups chasing after self-flying planes, as is Reliable Robotics, Pyka and the unicorn Volocopter.

In 2020, the size of the global cargo airline industry was $110.8 billion, according to Statista, and one source estimates that it’ll generate hundreds of billions in revenue by 2027.

MERLIN PROJECT RUNWAY CRACK

The first company to crack it at scale stands to reap handsome profits from transportation and logistics alone.

Autonomous flight is a grand challenge in aviation - and a gold mine.

Merlin project runway