JoeBen Bevirt

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JoeBen Bevirt is an American serial entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Joby Aviation, a California-based aerospace company. He is the recipient[1] of the 2018 Haueter Award and holds more than 160 U.S. patents in aerodynamics, aircraft design, electric and hydrogen propulsion.[2]

Early life and education[edit]

Bevirt was born to Paula Fry and Ron Bevirt. He was raised in the Last Chance community in Santa Cruz County, California. His name was inspired by the character JoeBen in his family friend Ken Kesey’s novel Sometimes a Great Notion.[3]

Bevirt graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 1991.[4] He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from University of California, Davis and a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.[5][6]

Career[edit]

Bevirt had been interested in engineering since his childhood and built one of the world’s first full-suspension mountain bikes while in high school.[7] He co-founded Velocity11[8] in 1999 to develop robotic laboratory systems for life sciences discovery. The company was later acquired by Agilent Technologies in 2007.[6]

In 2006, Bevirt founded Joby Inc., a consumer products company that developed the Gorillapod flexible camera tripod.[6][9] Bevirt also started Joby Energy with a focus on airborne wind turbines.[10]

In 2009, he founded Joby Aviation, a company pioneering the development of all-electric aircraft that can take off and land vertically, while cruising like a traditional airplane.[11][7] In 2020, his company received a signed G-1 Certification Basis from the FAA and airworthiness certification from the US Air Force.[12][13] On August 11th 2021, the company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange, making Bevirt the world’s first eVTOL billionaire according to media reports.[3]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bevirt worked with the genetics team at the University of California Santa Cruz to launch SummerBio, a company that provides affordable PCR tests.[7]

In March 2022, Bevirt was invited to testify before the United States House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee during a hearing addressing concerns around aviation noise.[14]

Achievements[edit]

In 2018, Bevirt was announced as one of UC Davis’ ‘Most Distinguished Alumni’.[15] He was also the 2018 recipient of the Paul. E. Haueter Award, presented by the Vertical Flight Society to recognize outstanding technical contributions to the field of vertical flight.[16]

Personal life[edit]

Bevirt lives in Santa Cruz with his wife, Jenny, and four children.[7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "JoeBen Bevirt | GreenBiz". www.greenbiz.com. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
  2. ^ "JoeBen Bevirt Inventions and Patents". patents.justia.com.
  3. ^ a b Bogaisky, Jeremy (August 24, 2021). "Electric Aviation Launches Its First Billionaire: Joby Founder JoeBen Bevirt". Forbes.
  4. ^ Hoge, Patrick (May 22, 2009). "Inveterate inventor JoeBen Bevirt makes good". San Francisco Business Journal.
  5. ^ Szeto, Leon (1 October 2018). "Alumni Spotlight: JoeBen Bevirt, '95". College of Engineering.
  6. ^ a b c Staff (July 26, 2021). "The Path Forward: Transportation & Innovation with JoeBen Bevirt & Reid Hoffman". Washington Post.
  7. ^ a b c d Bobrow, Emily (9 July 2021). "JoeBen Bevirt Is Bringing Flying Taxis from Sci-Fi to Reality". Wall Street Journal.
  8. ^ Szeto, Leon (2018-10-01). "Alumni Spotlight: JoeBen Bevirt '95 | College of Engineering". engineering.ucdavis.edu. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
  9. ^ Kava, Brad (9 September 2015). "Our Big Ideas". Good Times.
  10. ^ Wesoff, Eric (April 16, 2010). "Joby Energy: The Tale of a High-Flying Entrepreneur". www.greentechmedia.com.
  11. ^ Jr, Tom Huddleston (7 March 2021). "Joby Aviation is going public at a $6.6 billion valuation — take a look at its electric air taxi". CNBC.
  12. ^ Garrett-Glaser, Brian (February 9, 2021). "Joby Aviation established certification basis with FAA last year, company reveals". evtol.com.
  13. ^ General, John (October 14, 2021). "It's both a helicopter and a plane. Joby says this is the future of flying". CNN.
  14. ^ "Aviation Noise: Measuring Progress in Addressing Community Concerns". transportation.house.gov. March 17, 2022.
  15. ^ "College Announces 2018 Distinguished Engineering Alumni Recipients". College of Engineering. 1 October 2018.
  16. ^ "VFS - Vertical Flight Society Award Winners". vtol.org.
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