SkyDrive Secures ¥8.3 Billion in Pre-Series D Funding from Suzuki, JR East, JR Kyushu, and Others

TOYOTA, Japan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 4, 2025--

SkyDrive Inc. (‘SkyDrive'), a leading eVTOL (*1) aircraft manufacturer based in Japan, today announced that it has raised ¥8.3 billion in Pre-Series D funding through a third-party allotment. This funding round was led by MUFG Bank, Ltd. (‘MUFG’), with investments from Suzuki Motor Corporation (‘Suzuki’), East Japan Railway Company (‘JR East’), Kyushu Railway Company (‘JR Kyushu’), and seven other companies. With this latest round, SkyDrive's cumulative funding now exceeds ¥43 billion.

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Background and Purpose of Fundraising

SkyDrive, founded in 2018, is working to fulfil its mission of “taking the lead in the once-in-a-century mobility revolution” and its vision of creating a future in which the general public, in Japan and around the world, use eVTOLs to meet their daily mobility needs. The company has been actively working to obtain type certification, a critical step toward the commercialization of eVTOL. In February 2025, Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) issued a G-1 certification basis for the SKYDRIVE SD-05, SkyDrive’s lightweight, 3-seater eVTOL aircraft (*2).

Currently, SkyDrive is advancing its certification plans and coordinating with JCAB on the specifics of upcoming tests and their timelines. Following an agreement on the certification plan, SkyDrive will conduct extensive ground and flight tests in line with the agreed plans. The new funding will be used to strengthen the development team, enhance testing infrastructure, improve operational readiness, and accelerate activities related to certification and development.

Strategic Alliances with Railway Companies

Following on from partnerships with Osaka Metro Co., Ltd. and Kintetsu Group Holdings Co., Ltd., SkyDrive is delighted to welcome JR East and JR Kyushu as strategic equity partners in this new funding round. SkyDrive now maintains capital and business alliances with a total of four railway companies. Integrating SkyDrive’s eVTOL capabilities into existing networks operated by these partner companies will create seamless mobility solutions that effectively combine overland and air travel. These collaborations will also focus on the establishment of air routes and the development of vertiports, as well as public relations efforts designed to boost public support for widespread eVTOL use of eVTOL.

Comments

Mr. Yoichi Kise, President and CEO of East Japan Railway Company
“The history of rail travel in Japan dates back more than 150 years. Since their introduction, railways have continually evolved alongside societal progress, adapting to changing lifestyles and technologies. Our recent partnership with SkyDrive represents an important milestone in our journey to create seamless mobility services that connect ground and air transportation. We believe this collaboration has the potential to address regional transportation challenges and unlock innovative solutions. By integrating railway services with eVTOL technology, we aim to help build a more comfortable and sustainable society. Building on our long-standing commitment to safety and passenger peace-of-mind, the East Japan Railway Company looks to create new value through the next-generation mobility solutions that will shape the future of transport.”

Mr. Yoji Furumiya, Representative Director, President and Corporate Officer of Kyushu Railway Company
“eVTOL will not only provide tourists with exciting, memorable air travel experiences, it will also make significant contributions to community development by providing a new daily transportation option for local community residents. This initiative aligns with key strategies outlined in the JR Kyushu Group Medium-Term Business Plan, which outlines our deep involvement in realizing sustainable mobility services, city building through enhanced collaboration among businesses, and planting seeds for the future. Through the introduction of innovations in air mobility, we aim to make the Kyushu region more attractive, and we are committed to working together with the local community to advance this exciting project.”

Mr. Norihiko Takao, President of Univance Corporation
“We are thrilled to announce our investment in SkyDrive, a company driving the move towards next-generation mobility services as an innovator at the forefront of eVTOL aircraft development. At Univance, we have spent decades developing and manufacturing advanced drive systems for the automotive industry, and we are confident that, by applying our expertise, we can play a key role in building the infrastructure needed for a new era of transportation. Through our partnership with SkyDrive, we look forward to creating sustainable and innovative mobility solutions, while working together to address critical societal challenges and shape a better future.”

Tomohiro Fukuzawa, CEO of SkyDrive Inc.
“Since our additional Series C funding in August 2024, SkyDrive has made steady progress in the development of our eVTOL aircraft. With substantial support from our partner Suzuki, prototypes of our eVTOL have successfully completed numerous flight tests without incident, also achieving a successful demonstration flight at the Osaka-Kansai Expo site in April 2025. We are also pleased with the progress of our certification plans with the issuance by JCAB of the standards that will apply to our application for type certification.

On the global business front, we have received over 380 pre-orders across seven countries, further expanding the international reach of our vision. Additionally, in this Pre-Series D round, we are honored to welcome JR East and JR Kyushu as new partners. We are confident that integrating SkyDrive’s next-generation mobility solutions into Japan’s railway networks will enable us to deliver seamless mobility services that link ground and air transport, providing a fast and convenient customer experience.

As we welcome this new investment, we would also like to express our deepest gratitude to all of the investors who have been with us from the earlier stages of our journey. These valuable partners include Suzuki, MUFG Bank, Itochu Technology Ventures, Obayashi Corporation, Kansai Electric Power, Toyoda Iron Works, NHK Spring, and SuMi Trust Innovation Investment. Through their early involvement, these shareholders have shared SkyDrive’s vision, significantly contributing to the refinement of our technology and the expansion of our business possibilities. Their unwavering support enables us to push the boundaries of innovation and work toward the wider public acceptance and adoption of eVTOL.

We remain committed to advancing our development efforts as a united team, striving to bring the future of air mobility to life as quickly as possible.”

About SkyDrive Inc.

SkyDrive is an eVTOL company aiming “to take the lead in the once-in-a-century mobility revolution”. The company began testing eVTOL prototypes in 2014 prior to official incorporation in 2018. Under its future vision for urban transportation, flying in eVTOLs will become a regular part of city life. In 2019, SkyDrive became the first company to fly a crewed eVTOL in Japan. As of 2025, SkyDrive is working with civil aviation authorities in Japan and the US to acquire certification for “SKYDRIVE”, the company’s first eVTOL product. SkyDrive showcased the first public flight of the SKYDRIVE at Expo 2025 in Osaka in April 2025, with plans for further demonstration flights in summer. SkyDrive began production of “SKYDRIVE” in March 2024 at a plant owned by Suzuki Motor Corporation, SkyDrive's official production partner. SkyDrive is headquartered in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, and led by CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa, an engineer and entrepreneur.
For more information, please visit: https://en.skydrive2020.com/

Editor’s Note:
(*1) “eVTOL” is an abbreviation for electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing. As the name suggests, eVTOL aircraft can take off and land without a runway. eVTOLs are powered by electricity and incorporate advanced, automatic, flight control technology.
(*2) Related press release: https://en.skydrive2020.com/archives/14401
(*3) Related press release: https://en.skydrive2020.com/archives/14350
(*4) Related press release: https://en.skydrive2020.com/archives/14325

A vision for potential eVTOL routes in Oita Prefecture. As announced by JR Kyushu and SkyDrive.(*4) A research project utilizing the 'Subsidy for the Development of Advanced Air Mobility Commercial Services for Fiscal Year 2025' in Oita Prefecture has been launched.

An initial concept for areas of Iwate Prefecture (northern Japan) that could be served by SkyDrive’s eVTOL. As announced by JR East and SkyDrive.(*3)

Investors in Pre-Series D Funding

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia and Ukraine traded deadly strikes overnight and on Saturday morning, killing 10 people and wounding several dozen more, officials on both sides said Saturday.

The attacks came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to Istanbul for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He will also meet with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Christians.

“We are working to strengthen our partnership to ensure the real protection of lives, advance stability, and guarantee security in Europe and the Middle East. Joint efforts always yield the best results,” Zelenskyy said in a post on the messaging app Telegram after arriving in Istanbul.

Russia fired 286 drones at Ukraine overnight, 260 of which were downed, the Ukrainian Air Force said in an online statement.

Five people — three women and two men — were killed in the city of Nikopol in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and 19 others were wounded, the head of the regional military administration Oleksandr Hanzha said. The attack damaged market stalls and a shop.

In the city of Sumy, not far from the border with Russia, a strike wounded 11 people, the National Police said. Residential areas were hit, and houses, cars and utility networks were damaged in the attack.

In the capital, Kyiv, a drone strike caused a fire on the first floor of a three-story office and warehouse building, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said. No casualties were reported.

In the partially occupied Donetsk region, a Russian drone strike hit a civilian car on the Kostyantynivka–Druzhkivka road on Saturday morning, killing one woman and wounding another, according to the head of the Kostyantynivka City Military Administration, Serhiy Horbunov.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed Saturday that its forces fired “long-range air- and ground-based precision weapons, as well as strike drones” at unspecified “military-industrial and energy facilities used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”

Meanwhile, the Russian-installed head of the occupied Luhansk region, Leonid Pasechnik, said Ukrainian forces hit railroad infrastructure in the region and private houses, killing a family of three — a couple and their 8-year-old child.

The Security Service of Ukraine, also known as the SBU, claimed it used drone strikes to halt production at a metallurgical plant in the Russian-occupied city of Alchevsk in the Luhansk region, most of which is controlled by the Russian forces.

The SBU said on its Facebook page that drone strikes damaged blast furnaces, key production workshops, distillation columns, gas pipelines and electrical substations that power the plant, which supplies Russia’s state tank and railroad car plant, Uralvagonzavod.

There was no immediate comment from Russian officials.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian military overnight shot down 85 Ukrainian drones over nine Russian regions, the annexed Crimea region and the Black Sea.

In Russia's Rostov region, on the border with Ukraine, one person was killed and four sustained injuries, according to the region's governor, Yuri Slyusar. The attack sparked a fire at a warehouse facility of an unspecified logistics company, and another fire on a dry-cargo vessel flying a foreign flag several kilometers from the shore, Slyusar said.

In the Samara region's city of Tolyatti, one person was wounded, Gov. Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said. The roof of a residential building was damaged and windows were shattered in several apartments, he said.

In this image made from video provided by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Saturday, April 4, 2026, a Russian T-72B3M tank fires towards Ukrainian position. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Saturday, April 4, 2026, rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged following a Russian strike in Sumy, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Saturday, April 4, 2026, rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged following a Russian strike in Sumy, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Saturday, April 4, 2026, rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged following a Russian strike in Sumy, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Saturday, April 4, 2026, rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged following a Russian strike in Sumy, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Saturday, April 4, 2026, rescue workers put out a fire of a residential building damaged following a Russian strike in Sumy, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)