Uber is working with California-based Joby Aviation to allow riders to book an all-electric air taxi directly in the Uber app.

Joby expects to carry its first passengers later this year in Dubai, marking a milestone in the Joby-Uber partnership to bring multi-modal transportation to cities around the world.

To book a flight on a Joby aircraft, riders will open the Uber app and enter their destination in the “Where to?” bar. If their trip qualifies, Uber Air powered by Joby will appear as an option. With a single tap, the app seamlessly connects and books every leg of the journey, including pickup and drop-off.

Joby’s all-electric air taxi is being designed for up to four passengers, with comfortable seating, featuring large windows with panoramic views of the city below from every seat. It will be flown by a certified commercial pilot.

Joby’s aircraft uses six tilting propellers to take off vertically before transitioning into forward flight. It can travel at speeds of up to 320kmph, and has a range of up to 160km on a single charge.

Designed for cities, it is engineered with multiple levels of redundancies to enhance safety. The acoustic profile is quiet enough to blend into the ambient sounds of a city’s streets.

Before launching commercial operations in the USA, the FAA requires extensive testing and certification. Joby has already completed more than 800,000km of flight tests across its fleet and has begun the final stage of this certification process, reflecting its safety-focused approach and steady progress towards carrying passengers.

“We’ve long believed in the power of advanced air mobility to transform how people move through cities,” said Sachin Kansal, chief product officer at Uber (www.uber.com). “With Uber Air, riders will be able to book Joby’s electric air taxi through a simple and familiar, one-tap experience on Uber, seamlessly connecting every leg of their journey, making ground-to-sky travel even more effortless.”

Eric Allison, chief product officer at Joby (www.jobyaviation.com), added: “We set out to build a new layer of urban transportation. Our focus has always been on creating a flight experience that operates quietly and integrates naturally into the rhythm of city life. By partnering with Uber, we’re making this new mode of transportation familiar and accessible, connecting the ground and the sky through a system designed to save people time and fit seamlessly into how they already move.”

Joby and Uber have been working together to deliver the future of urban air mobility since 2019. In 2021, Joby acquired Uber’s Elevate division which played a role in establishing the urban air mobility sector and developing the tools required for market selection, demand simulation and multi-modal operations.

Last year, Uber and Joby announced plans to bring Blade’s commercial helicopter service to the Uber app in 2026, following Joby’s acquisition of Blade’s passenger business. The partnership will help pave the way for Joby’s electric air taxi service, once approved, to expand to markets around the world, including Dubai, New York, Los Angeles, UK and Japan.