The race to commercialize electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is often measured by regulatory milestones and test flight announcements, but a less visible indicator reveals the true state of competition: hiring patterns and workforce expansion. Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation are both aggressively recruiting, and their job boards expose which company is further along in the transition from development to manufacturing, and where the industry's real bottlenecks lie .

What Do Joby and Archer's Hiring Strategies Reveal About Their Timeline?

Joby Aviation, based in Santa Cruz, reported approximately 2,550 employees in its most recent SEC filing, representing a 14.18% increase over the prior year. The company currently lists around 271 open positions on LinkedIn and its official career site, suggesting a targeted expansion of roughly 10% . Archer Aviation, its San Jose-based rival, reported a workforce of 1,160 employees and is posting around 200 to 233 openings across both LinkedIn and its career page, implying planned headcount growth of roughly 20%. For context, Archer's workforce surged 49.87% in a single year during 2025 alone .

The difference in hiring velocity tells an important story. Joby has completed Stage 3 of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) five-stage type certification process and is now in Stage 4, the for-credit testing phase, having begun flight testing its first production-conforming aircraft in early March 2026 . Archer's FAA Means of Compliance was accepted in January 2026, and the company is working through its detailed certification and testing campaign, with a commercial launch targeted for 2026 . Yet Archer is hiring at nearly twice the rate of Joby, suggesting the company is still building foundational infrastructure while Joby is transitioning toward manufacturing at scale.

How Are the Two Companies Preparing Their Workforces for Production?

The types of roles each company is hiring for reveal their current operational phase. Joby's open positions focus heavily on manufacturing readiness: technicians, quality assurance inspectors specializing in composite parts, and apprenticeship programs for multi-shift production workers . In January 2026, Joby agreed to acquire a facility in Ohio to support production expansion, with plans to increase output at its California and Ohio sites to around four aircraft per month by 2027 .

Archer's 200 to 233 openings paint a different picture. The company is simultaneously finalizing aircraft design integration, pushing through FAA certification, and standing up its Huntington Beach manufacturing facility. Open roles span CAD integration engineering, tooling design, supply chain systems analysis, and AI research, suggesting a company building its digital factory backbone before its production lines are fully running .

• Joby's Focus: Production technicians, quality assurance inspectors for composite parts, and multi-shift apprenticeship programs indicate a company scaling manufacturing operations
• Archer's Focus: CAD engineering, tooling design, supply chain systems, and AI research suggest a company still finalizing design and building manufacturing infrastructure
• Hiring Growth Rate: Archer's 20% planned expansion versus Joby's 10% reflects different maturity stages in the development cycle

Joe Rooney, a recruiter specializing in advanced technology sectors including electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles, and robotics, observed this pattern across the industry. "We've definitely observed a pivot from mainly R&D and design-focused engineering roles towards manufacturing, operations, supply chain, integration, and field deployment roles," Rooney stated. "As companies move from prototyping to production and commercialization, the need for talent that can realize these designs at scale becomes paramount" .

What Compensation Challenges Could Slow the eVTOL Industry?

Talent acquisition in the eVTOL space faces a unique challenge: competing with both traditional aviation and emerging tech sectors. Rooney noted that emerging technology firms typically offer more competitive base salaries and significantly more compelling equity packages than traditional aviation employers, but traditional aviation still offers stability and clearer career pathways . "The trade-off often comes down to individual risk tolerance and long-term wealth creation potential," Rooney explained. The candidates commanding the highest premiums are those who can bridge both worlds, combining aerospace expertise with startup agility .

Rooney

This talent competition matters because both Joby and Archer are burning cash at significant rates. Archer has recently strengthened its balance sheet, but cash burn is expected to pick up over the year, driven by investment in its hybrid program, increased aircraft production, ongoing flight testing, and additional hiring . J.P. Morgan analyst Bill Peterson expects further capital raises would not surprise him, as revenue recognition and cost offsets from various programs and awards are likely to remain modest relative to Archer's continued resource-intensive operations .

How Should Investors Interpret These Hiring Signals?

The hiring data ultimately reflects a sector in transition. Both companies have moved past the conceptual phase and are now building the operational infrastructure that commercial aviation requires . Yet the continued demand for design and engineering talent serves as a reminder that the eVTOL industry, despite its rapid advances, remains a work in progress. Whether the timelines hold will depend as much on who they hire as on what they build.

For investors watching these companies, hiring patterns offer a window into management's true confidence in their timelines. Joby's measured 10% expansion suggests confidence in its manufacturing readiness, while Archer's aggressive 20% growth indicates the company is still building critical capabilities. Neither company is yet profitable, and both are spending heavily to reach certification and commercialization . The eVTOL market was valued at $14.3 billion at the end of 2025 and is projected to expand rapidly through the end of the decade, but execution risk remains high .

Archer's stock has shed 63% since peaking in October, as progress toward aircraft certification has moved slower than investors hoped . Cathie Wood, CEO of Ark Invest, recently sold 436,322 shares of Archer through her ARKK fund, signaling reduced confidence in near-term progress . Yet despite these headwinds, Archer has secured government support and is set to start flying under the eIPP (eVTOL Integration Pilot Program) later this year after being chosen across three states: Texas, Florida, and New York . The program is designed to build operational familiarity for state and municipal authorities while supporting public acceptance ahead of the 2028 LA Olympics, where Archer expects to run commercial flights .

The hiring race between Joby and Archer reveals that the flying taxi revolution is real, but it is unfolding at different speeds for different companies. Joby appears closer to manufacturing scale, while Archer is still building the foundation. For the industry to succeed, both companies will need to attract and retain the specialized talent that can bridge aerospace engineering with startup innovation. The next phase of competition will be won not just by better aircraft designs, but by better hiring decisions.