Revolution.Aero San Francisco 2023

September 6 & 7 2023 | San Francisco

Revolution.Aero San Francisco September 6 & 7  2023

“At the first Revolution.Aero, I met David Merrill, CEO of Elroy Air. We invested in his company shortly thereafter. We’ve now invested in at least three of the companies that presented this year and are close to investing in a fourth. I always learn something I didn’t know, meet the industry’s leaders, and identify companies in which we will invest.”

DiamondStream Parners

Revolution.Aero San Francisco 2023 brought together over 285 senior executives leading the Fourth Aviation Revolution.

Revolution.Aero is the premier event for the aviation and aerospace industries, bringing together thought leaders, innovators, investors, and disruptors to explore the future of flight.

Over the two days, attendees had the opportunity to hear from a diverse range of speakers, participate in interactive sessions, and networked with like-minded individuals passionate about shaping the future of aviation and aerospace.

Some of the topics that were explored include:

  • Choosing the right investor
  • The challenges and benefits of hybrid, electric and hydrogen fueled propulsion
  • The role of the aviation revolution in the mobility revolution
  • How OEMs can finance production
  • Issues of insuring advanced aircraft
  • Integrating new technology in existing airspace
  • Where advanced air mobility will be in 2035
  • Where is regional aviation on the hype scale

The event also featured keynote presentations from some of the most influential voices in the industry, as well as showcased the latest innovations and technologies that are transforming aviation as we know it.

We designed the event to be highly interactive, with plenty of opportunities for attendees to network, collaborate, and learn from each other.  Attendees had the chance to meet with aviation giants such as Airbus, Joby, Archer, NBAA and Bristow as well as exciting startups leading the revolution, view which companies attended our Dublin event below.  We scheduled over 10 hours of networking across the two days giving you the best chance to make long-lasting and powerful connections.

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, policymaker, or simply someone who is passionate about leading the future of aviation and aerospace, Revolution.Aero San Francisco 2023 is was the event you didn’t want to miss.

“By far the most valuable event we’ve been to”
Bristow Group 

 

Revolution.aero Agenda

All timings are subject to change

Tuesday 5th September

18.00 Pre-conference cocktail reception

Wednesday 6th September

08.30 Refreshments and Registration

09.00 Opening Remarks
Alasdair Whyte, Revolution.Aero

09.05 Forecasting Advanced Air Mobility
What sectors are undervalued
How big will AAM be in 2035
Are we nearing the slope of enlightenment
Joshua Ng, Director, Alton Aviation Consultancy
Jay Carmel, Principal, Renaissance Strategic Advisors
Eliot Lees, VP, Aviation, Travel & Tourism, ICF International

09.45  Fireside Chat: Wisk – Mixing up the future of flight
Is autonomous certification closer than we think?
Where to test and certificate
Jon Lovegren, Head of Autonomy, Wisk

10.05 Choosing the right strategic investor
Strategics vs pure VC
Why it should not just be  about the money
How can you stay aligned?
Moderator: Alasdair Whyte, Revolution.Aero
Stanley Tran, United Airlines Ventures
Jim Lockheed, Investment Principal, JetBlue Ventures
Brian Flynn, Managing Director, DiamondStream Partners
Chase Lookofsky, Investment Manager, Supernal

10.45  Building an AAM ecosystem we can all trust
Understanding vertiport operations
Connecting different stakeholders
Yanik Doyon, VP Sales & Business Development, Flight Avionics, North America, Thales Group

11.05 Morning Coffee

11.30 Hybrid Aviation: Flash in the pan or here to stay
A temporary solution?
Betting on the future
Battery-Hybrid versus Hydrogen-Hybrid
Is it all about range?
Moderator: Evan Deahl, Engagement Manager, Alton Aviation Consultancy
Kevin Noertker, Co-Founder & CEO, Ampaire
Eric Bartsch, CEO & Co-Founder, VerdeGo Aero
Marc Ausman, Chief Product Officer, Electra.aero
Christopher Ruud, CEO & Owner, DeltaHawk Engines

12.10 Fireside Chat: Joby – How 2025 commercialisation is shaping up
Strategizing vertical integration versus partnerships
What will the S4 experience be like?
Fitting into the wider ecosystem
Eric Allison, Head of Product, Joby Aviation

12.30 Expediating Autonomy
Is collaboration key?
Autonomous aircraft versus autonomous operations
Which end markets will benefit cargo versus passenger?
Moderator: Matt Thurber, Editor-in-Chief, Aviation International Network
Luuk van Dijk, Founder & CEO, Daedalean AI
Maxime Gariel, CTO, XWing
Robert Rose, Co-Founder & CEO, Reliable Robotics
Alex Naiman, CTO, Merlin Labs

13.10 Lunch sponsored by Wisk

14.25  Fireside Chat: Scaling Autonomous Systems & AI for Commercial Flight
Moderator: Robin Riedel, Partner, McKinsey & Company
Arne Stoschek, VP of AI, Autonomy & Digital Information, Acubed by Airbus

14.45 The hurdles for hydrogen aviation
Gaseous versus liquid fuel
Low temperature versus high temperature
Challenges of fixed wing and rotor designs
Moderator: Garrett Reim, Space & Emerging Technologies Editor, Aviation Week Network
Val Miftakhov, Founder & CEO, ZeroAvia
Loris Gliner, Director of Powertrain Engineering & Flight Test, Universal Hydrogen
Porter Wong, Business Development, Hydroplane
John Piasecki, President & CEO, Piasecki Aircraft Corporation

15.25 Fireside Chat: A Legal overview of the Proposed SFAR on the Integration of Powered-Lift
David Norton, Partner, Shackelford, Bowen, McKinley & Norton

15.45 Afternoon Tea

16.10 How can OEMs finance production
Debt versus equity
Using government incentives
Managing supply chains
Customer finance and support
Moderator: Eddie Gross, Shareholder, Vedder Price
Kirsten Bartok-Touw, Managing Partner, New Vista Capital
Catherine Kolimas Schorm, MD Global Industrials Group, Investment Banking, Goldman Sachs
Yotam Avrahami, Commercial & Private Public Partnerships Projects Lead, Intelligent Transport, Deloitte
David Fiore, Vice President, Transportation Division, Export-Import Bank of the US

16.50 Efficiency, Efficiency, Efficiency
The benefits of BWB designs
Cutting fuel consumption and emissions
Mark Page, JetZero

17.10 Planning for Operations
Continued technical progress in the air and on the ground
Partnering with customers to plan for integration
Gaining operator insight from qualitative evaluation flights
Moderator@ Yves Le Marquand, Revolution.Aero
Skye Carapetyan, Sales Director, Beta Technologies

17.30 Closing Remarks
Alasdair Whyte, Revolution.Aero

17.30 Cocktail Reception

Sponsors

Lead Sponsors
AURA Network Systems is designing and building an FAA-compliant network to provide safety-critical command-and-control (C2) links encompassing command data, telemetry data, and its own air traffic control (ATC) voice solution. The private network will enable crewed and uncrewed aircraft to safely navigate through national airspace, including beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), using licensed aviation-designated spectrum ideal for secure and reliable communications. AURA’s technology increases the commercial viability of autonomous operations. See auranetworksystems.com for more information.
Wisk is an advanced air mobility (AAM) company dedicated to delivering safe, everyday flight for everyone. Wisk’s 6th generation, four-passenger, self-flying, eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) air taxi represents the first-ever autonomous eVTOL candidate for type certification by the FAA and will make it possible for passengers to skip the traffic and get to their destination faster. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area with over a decade of experience and 1600+ test flights, Wisk is shaping the future of daily commutes and urban travel, safely, and sustainably.

Sponsors
Acubed, Airbus' innovation center in Silicon Valley, is a fast-paced machine developing and delivering high impact technological breakthroughs set to transform the aerospace industry. Specializing in AI, autonomy, software and simulation, Acubed is building the future of flight now. Acubed was recently awarded a Best Place to Work in Silicon Valley by San Francisco Times and the Silicon Valley Business Journal for its exemplary culture. For more information, visit us at acubed.airbus.com.
Bristow Group Inc. is the leading global provider of innovative and sustainable vertical flight solutions. Bristow primarily provides aviation services to a broad base of major integrated, national and independent offshore energy companies. Bristow provides commercial search and rescue (SAR) services in several countries and public sector SAR services in the United Kingdom (U.K.) on behalf of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency. Additionally, the Company offers ad hoc helicopter and fixed wing transportation services. Bristow currently has customers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Dutch Caribbean, Guyana, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Spain, Suriname, Trinidad, the U.K. and the U.S.

To learn more, visit our website at www.bristowgroup.com
DRONAMICS is a fast-growing cargo drone company on a mission to enable same day delivery for everyone, everywhere.

Its proprietary Black Swan aircraft is specifically built for cargo, carrying up to 350 kg at a distance of up to 2,500 km, while powered by energy efficient technologies. It can land anywhere, including unpaved strips, allowing it to easily integrate into customers’ supply chains while at the same time opening new trade routes and opportunities for underserved and remote communities.

Operating at up to 90% lower emissions than traditional aircrafts, the Black Swan enables same-day shipping over very long distances for a variety of industries, from pharma to food, from e-commerce to spare parts.

DRONAMICS is IATA’s first Strategic Partner for drones worldwide and has been named by the European Commission as a Top 10 EU-Africa startup.
Electro.Aero is the leader in aircraft charging technology, supplying chargers for both eVTOL and fixed wing electric aircraft. Our full turnkey solutions include containerized battery systems to serve as powerbanks for your chargers and electric ground support equipment, giving you rapid and consistent recharge times.
Luminary Cloud is an early-stage tech startup focused on innovation that taps the nearly infinite performance and availability of the cloud to accelerate enterprise industrial R&D. The company is developing its initial product, currently in beta, in stealth mode
Shackelford Bowen McKinley & Norton, LLP, a full-service law firm with offices in Texas, Tennessee and Louisiana, has an internationally-recognized aviation law practice composed of attorneys with a deep well of aviation industry and aviation law experience. Our clients include, for example, fortune 50 companies operating large internal flight departments; high-net worth aircraft owners and operators; aircraft charter and management companies and fixed-base operators; aircraft leasing companies; pilots; air agency certificate holders; and aviation equipment manufacturers, among others.

We help our clients with the purchase, sale, operations, leasing, management and financing of their aircraft and aircraft-related businesses. We assess all of the applicable regulatory, tax and risk management issues that apply to their operations, working with them to make sure they fully understand the range of options they have so that they can best meet their individual goals while complying with those requirements.  We also assist clients in resolving disputes through negotiation, settlement, mediation and, when necessary, arbitration or litigation. We have represented clients in aviation related disputes including contract and business disputes, property tax appeals, lienholder remedies, and property/casualty losses, as well as the representation of pilots, mechanics, air carriers and commercial operators before the FAA and NTSB.
Supernal (Su·per·nal) is a U.S.-based mobility service provider on a mission to redefine how people move, connect, and live. We are developing an Advanced Air Mobility eVTOL vehicle and working to responsibly co-create the supporting ecosystem and integrate it into existing transit options. As part of Hyundai Motor Group, we are both a new business and an established company, with plans to harness our automotive manufacturing heritage to make Advanced Air Mobility accessible to the masses. Visit www.supernal.aero for more information and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies, investing in digital and “deep tech” innovations – connectivity, big data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and quantum technologies – to build a confident future crucial for the development of our societies. The Group provides its customers – businesses, organizations and governments – in the defense, aeronautics, space, transport, and digital identity and security domains with solutions, services and products that help them fulfill their critical role, consideration for the individual being the driving force behind all decisions. Thales has 77,000 employees in 68 countries. In 2022, the Group generated sales of over €23 billion
With over 70 professionals in Chicago, New York, Washington, DC, London, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Singapore and Dallas, the Global Transportation Finance team of Vedder Price is one of the largest, most experienced and best recognized transportation finance practices in the world. Since 2016 Vedder Price has been ranked Band 1 in Private Aircraft (Global-wide) of Chambers High Net Worth, recognizing the world’s leading high-net-worth advisers.

With one of the largest and most experienced Business Aircraft and Helicopter Finance practice in the world, Vedder Price is able to provide counsel in all aspects of business aircraft and helicopter financing transactions, particularly large jet aircraft but also small jets, turboprop aircraft and helicopters. Attorneys in the group are considered to be thought leaders regarding commercial and contract law matters pertaining to aircraft finance and leasing transactions, whether governed by U.S. law, English law or the commercial laws of other jurisdictions, or international treaties. You can expect to work with creative, experienced attorneys who have both deep practical experience and broad transportation industry perspectives insight that can support you in matters ranging from simple to highly complex.

Knowledge Partner
Advanced Air Mobility. Digitization. Fourth Industrial Revolution. Sustainability. Technology is driving the long-term aviation industry roadmap. Alton Aviation Consultancy supports a diverse clientele, including strategics, public sector agencies, regulators, and financial investors in navigating this rapidly changing landscape. Alton Aviation Consultancy’s aviation, aerospace, airline, aviation finance, and airport consultants bring a wealth of insight, proprietary data and proven analytical framework across the entire value chain We provide clients with actionable insights and strategies to drive next-generation innovation in aviation technology & air mobility. Our global presence across offices in New York, Dublin, Dubai, Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore and Tokyo enables us to deliver deep domain expertise and hands-on collaboration to clients across commercial, financial and technical disciplines.

Read Alton’s full analysis of the AAM market here

Sustainability Partner
4AIR is an industry pioneer offering sustainability solutions beyond just simple carbon neutrality. Its industry-first framework seeks to address climate impacts of all types and provides a simplified and verifiable path for private aviation industry participants to achieve meaningful aircraft emissions counteraction and reduction.

The 4AIR framework offers four levels, each with specific, science-based goals, independently verified results and progressively greater impacts on sustainability that make it easy for private aviation users to pursue sustainability through access to carbon markets, use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel, support for new technologies and other strategies.
For more information, visit us at www.4air.aero.

Association Partner
Canadian Advanced Air Mobility (CAAM) is a socially responsible, federal not-for-profit consortium that acts as the national catalyst for the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) industry in Canada. There vision is to build an ecosystem of national collaboration in creating and operating a sustainable, equitable and profitable Advanced Air Mobility industry in Canada.
The National Aircraft Finance Association is a member organization comprised of 140+ companies who work together to finance general and business aviation.

Aviation financing is specialized and should be entrusted to those with the expertise to meet your unique needs and goals. That’s where NAFA comes in.

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) is the leading organization for companies that rely on general aviation aircraft to help make their businesses more efficient, productive and successful. The association represents more than 11,000 companies and professionals, and provides more than 100 products and services to the business aviation community, including the NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE), the world’s largest civil aviation trade show.

Speakers

Eric Allison

Joby Aviation

Marc Ausman

Electra.Aero

Yotam Avrahami

Deloitte

Katerina Barilov

Jump Aero

Kirsten Bartok Touw

New Vista Capital

Eric Bartsch

VerdeGo Aero

Alistair Blundy

Skyrisks

Scot Campbell

Acubed by Airbus

Skye Carapetyan

Beta Technologies

Jay Carmel

Renaissance Strategic Advisors

Karen Cate

NASA

Francois Chopard

Starburst Aerospace

Erick Corona

Wisk

Greg Davis

Eviation

Eric Deahl

Alton Aviation Consultancy

Irena Deville

Dronamics

Carl Dietrich

Jump Aero

Darshan 'Dash' Divarkaran

AFWERX

James Dorris

Odys Aviation

Yanik Doyon

Thales Group

Jonathan Evans

KinectAir

David Fiore

Export Import Bank of the US

Brian Flynn

DiamondStream Partners

Anders Forslund

Heart Aerospace

Maxime Gariel

XWing

Noureddin Ghazavi

Federal Aviation Administration

Loris Gliner

Universal Hydrogen

Nikhil Goel

Archer

Eddie Gross

Vedder Price

Adam Grosser

UP.Partners

Hamid Hamidi

Limosa

Elan Head

The Air Current

Michael Hillermeier

Volocopter

Elias Kleimann

Wingtra

Catherine Kolimas Schorm

Goldman Sachs

Eliot Lees

ICF International

Max Liben

H3X Technologies

Jim Lockheed

JetBlue Ventures

Chase Lookofsky

Supernal

Jon Lovegren

Wisk

Apoorv Maheshwari

Ernst & Young

David Merrill

Elroy Air

Val Miftakhov

ZeroAvia

Nathan 'Nate' Millecam

Electric Power Systems

Eric Mueller

Joby Aviation

Alex Naiman

Merlin Labs

Amanda Nelson

Bristow Group

Joshua Ng

Alton Aviation Consultancy

Kevin Noertker

Ampaire

Julia Norsetter, JD

Reed Smith

David Norton

Shakelford, McKinley, Bowen & Norton

Scott O'Brien

Reliable Robotics

Mark Page

JetZero

Jon Petersen

Archer

John Piasecki

Piasecki Aircraft

Chris Proudlove

Global Aerospace

Marcelo Rajchamn

Ecocopter

Garrett Reim

Aviation Week Network

Robin Riedel

McKinsey & Company

Chris Rocheleau

NBAA

Robert Rose

Reliable Robotics

Christopher Ruud

DeltaHawk

Balkiz Sarihan

Airbus

Dennis Scott

ARC Aerosystems

Pamir Sevincel

Blackbird

Andre Stein

EVE Air Mobility

Sonny Tahiliani

RTX Ventures @ Raytheon Technologies

Stanley Tran

United Airlines Ventures

Bill Tolpegin

AURA Network Systems

Luuk van Dijk

Daedalean AI

Damon Vander Lind

Magpie Aviation

Richard Wang

Cuberg

Bryan Willows

Bristow Group

Porter Wong

Hydroplane

Attendees

Companies who are confirmed to attend Revolution.Aero San Francisco 2023

1200.aero | AAM Institute | Acubed by Airbus | AE Industrial Partners LP | Aerialoop | AeroTEC | Aerovy Mobility | AFWERX, U.S. Air Force | AIN Media Group | Airbus Urban Air Mobility | AirFleet Capital, Inc | Alef Aeronautics | Alloy Product Development | ALOFT AeroArchitects | Altair | Altaport | Alton Aviation Consultancy | American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics | Ampaire | And Aero | Apex View | ARC Aerosystems | Archer Aviation | Arup | Atlantic Aviation | AURA Network Systems | Avfoil | Avialex Law Group | Aviation Space Past & Future | Aviation Week Network | Azimuth | Bahrami Aviation LLC | Beacon AI | Beta Technologies | Blackbird Associates | BOLD | Bristow Group | CAE | Cerberus Capital Management LP | CITRIS and the Banatao Institute, University of California | Clay Lacy Aviation | Cosmic Aerospace | Crane Aerospace & Electronics | Cru Social Inc | Cuberg | CUSTOMCELLS | Daedalean AI | Deloitte | DeltaHawk Engines, Inc. | Diagnostic Solutions International, LLC | DiamondStream Partners | Dronamics | DropDrone | Dufour Aerospace | Duncan Aviation | EcoCopter | EKase Consulting | Electra.aero | Electric Power Systems | Electro.Aero | Elroy Air | EnerSys | Ernst & Young | European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) | Eve Air Mobility | Eviation | Evolito | Export Import Bank of the US | Falko | Federal Aviation Administration | Fleasy | FlightHouse Engineering | FlightLine Technologies, Inc | FlightSafety International | Fuelogic | Global Aerospace | Goldman Sachs | Greenjets | GTI Aviation | gunnercooke | H3X Technologies | Heart Aerospace | Hummingbird Aero International | Hydroplane | ICF International | IDA IRELAND | Innovative Solutions & Support | Ironwindtech | J.P. Morgan | Jaunt Air Mobility | JetBlue Ventures | JetCapital | Jetcraft | JetInsight | JetPerfect Foundation | JetZero | Joby Aviation | Jump Aero | KinectAir | L3Harris Commercial Aviation | Law Offices of Paul A. Lange, LLC | Limosa | Lufthansa Innovation Hub | Luminary Cloud | M4 Engineering, Inc. | Macquarie Rotorcraft | MagLev Aero | Magpie Aviation | McKinsey & Company | Merlin Labs | MightyFly | Moya Aero | NASA | National Business Aviation Association | New Vista Capital | Odys Aviation | Opener | Overair | Panorama Aero | Perception A | Piasecki Aircraft Corporation | PlaneWave, Inc. | Pratt & Whitney Canada | PteroDynamics | Reed Smith LLP | Reliable Robotics | Renaissance Strategic Advisors | Rotor | RTX Ventures @ Raytheon Technologies | Safran Aircraft Engines | Safran Helicopter Engines | Scope Aircraft Finance | Seabury Capital LLC | Shackelford, Bowen, McKinley & Norton, LLP | Sikorsky Aircraft, A Lockheed Martin Company | Skali, Inc. | SkyGrid | Skyrisks | Skytrac | SMG Consulting | Sol | Solairus Aviation | Sonomaaviation | Southern Sky Aviation | Starburst Aerospace | Supernal | Swift Engineering Inc. | Thales Digital Factory | Thales Group | The Air Current | The Flying Car | The Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkley | TransMedics | Triumph Group | True-Course | U.S. Air Force | United Airline Ventures | United Airlines, Inc | Universal Hydrogen | UP.Partners | Vedder Price | VerdeGo Aero | Volocopter | Wave Engine | Wingtra | Wisk | XTI Aircraft | Xwing | ZeroAvia | Zeva

Revolution.aero