Uber has unveiled plans to integrate electric air taxis directly into its core platform, allowing users to book flights on Joby Aviation aircraft via the Uber app.
Branded as Uber Air powered by Joby, the service will offer riders a seamless multimodal journey, combining ground transfers with short-haul urban flights. The announcement signals a significant step towards commercial urban air mobility, with Joby expecting to carry its first passengers in Dubai later this year.
Within the Uber app, riders will be able to enter a destination and, where eligible, select an Uber Air option alongside existing services such as Uber Black.
The booking will automatically coordinate each stage of the journey, from ground transport to vertiport to final destination, positioning air taxis as an integrated extension of Uber’s mobility ecosystem.
Joby’s aircraft is designed to carry up to four passengers and a commercial pilot, travelling at speeds of up to 200mph with a range of approximately 100 miles. The fully electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft uses six tilting propellers, allowing it to lift vertically before transitioning into forward flight.
The manufacturer says the aircraft has been engineered with multiple redundancies to support safe urban operations, alongside significantly quieter performance compared with traditional helicopters.
Before launching in the United States, Joby must complete the final phase of certification with the Federal Aviation Administration. The company has already logged more than 50,000 miles of test flights and is progressing through regulatory approvals.
Uber and Joby have worked together since 2019. In 2021, Joby acquired Uber’s Elevate division to accelerate development of urban air transport and align technology with Uber’s global network.
The partnership also includes plans to integrate Blade Air Mobility helicopter services into the Uber app in 2026, paving the way for electric aircraft expansion into major cities including Dubai, New York, Los Angeles, the UK and Japan.
For business travellers and high-value urban commuters, Uber Air represents a potential time-saving alternative in congested metropolitan corridors.
The move from concept renderings to live commercial integration, beginning in Dubai, suggests urban air mobility is entering its first operational phase. If certification milestones are achieved as planned, electric air taxis could soon become a bookable option within everyday mobility platforms rather than a futuristic concept.
As regulatory approvals progress and infrastructure develops, Uber’s integration strategy positions it at the centre of the emerging urban air ecosystem bringing aviation into the mainstream ride-hailing experience.