Once-beloved Lilium, a nascent electric plane business that had raised more than $1 billion before going public, has ceased operations and laid off about 1,000 workers after a failed attempt to raise financing.
Gründerszene first published. Report layoffs.. Lilium co-founder and CEO Patrick Nathen Verified on LinkedIn. For 10 years, the company has been out of business.
“It is sad that after 10 years and 10 months, Lilium has ceased operations. Daniel, Sebastian The company that Matthias and I founded could no longer pursue the same belief in environmentally friendly aviation. This is heartbreaking and the timing feels ironic,” Nathen wrote.
The layoffs cover the bulk of the company's workforce, and come just days after about 200 workers were laid off. As a rule, December 16th.
A spokesperson for Lilium responded to an email seeking comment but did not provide any information. “The company will be in touch as soon as we say something,” the email said.
Lilium has been struggling for months to develop a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft with speeds of up to 100 km/h. The startup's vision for electric aircraft has attracted backers such as Tencent, including an order for 100 electric jets from Saudi Arabia. In 2021, the company went public on the Nasdaq Exchange through a reverse merger with SPAC Qell.
The company has made some progress, including powering its first full-scale prototype, but it's still years away from delivering its product.
In October, Lilium said it would. File for failure – Equivalent to US bankruptcy after failure to collect emergency money from German government. Under bankruptcy, Lilium lost control of its subsidiaries, including Lilium eAircraft. KPMG handled the sale process.