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Hyundai’s electric vertical take-off and landing startup Supernal is moving its global headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Irvine, California, and asking about three dozen workers to relocate, TechCrunch has learned.
The company told TechCrunch that about 5% of its total workforce — roughly 35 to 40 people — is being asked to relocate to California. Supernal declined to say how many people will remain in the capital, but the move affects the majority of people there; Data from LinkedIn and a source who spoke to TechCrunch on condition of anonymity show that about 45 people in the D.C. area work for Supernal.
The change comes just over a year after the Supernal He opened a 28,000 square foot office In D.C., the company said, at the time, that it had spent more than a year building the three-story office “with the tagline ‘design facilities that inspire and go beyond the comfort of employees’ homes.’” Supernal opened what it called an “engineering headquarters” in Irvine and a “headquarters Research and Development Headquarters” in Fremont, California around the same time.
The decision was made to “enhance collaboration and communication between teams,” Hyundai Motor Group President and Supernal CEO Jayeon Shin said in a statement to TechCrunch.
The D.C. office “will remain a hub for policy and organizational efforts,” Shin said. He said the change would not affect Supernal’s goal of launching eVTOL service in 2028.
Hyundai has been working on eVTOL technology for years, but announced in December 2021 that it would split its urban air mobility division into a separate business arm called Supernal. The effort has grown to about 700 employees in the years since.
The electric aircraft and electric vehicle (eVTOL) industry is still in a state of flux as companies try to turn the idea of flying taxis into a real business. It was a volocopter Swinging On the brink of bankruptcy for months, Lilium closed its doors in October. Meanwhile, Toyota recently pumped an additional $500 million into Joby Aviation, as it eyes a commercial launch in 2025.
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