Joby Is Buying a Defense Company. Archer Plans to Buy 3 From Boeing. Here's Which Pivot Makes More Sense.

Joby Aviation is acquiring defense specialist Resonant Sciences for $500 million while Archer Aviation is acquiring three Boeing subsidiaries (Wisk Aero, SkyGrid, and Insitu) for a 16.5% stake. Both companies are pivoting toward defense as their commercial eVTOL aircraft businesses remain unproven. Archer appears further behind in FAA certification and commercial viability, making its defense diversification more critical, though neither company has demonstrated strong organic revenue growth in their core eVTOL businesses.