Lilium, once a darling in the nascent industry of electric aircraft that raised more than $1 billion before going public, has ceased operations and laid off about 1,000 workers after efforts to gain financing and exit insolvency failed.
The publication Gründerszene was the first to report the layoffs. Lilium co-founder and CEO Patrick Nathen confirmed on LinkedIn that the 10-year-old company had stopped operating.
“After 10 years and 10 months, it is a sad fact that Lilium has ceased operations. The company that Daniel, Sebastian, Matthias and I founded can no longer pursue our shared belief in more environmentally friendly aviation. This is heartbreaking and the timing feels painfully ironic,” wrote Nathen.
The layoffs cover the bulk of the company’s workforce and come a few days after about 200 workers were let go, according to a regulatory filing on December 16.
A spokesperson from Lilium responded to an email seeking comment, but didn’t provide any information. “The company will communicate once we can say something,” the email read.
Lilium, which was developing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft with speeds of up to 100 km/h, has struggled for months. The startup’s vision for electric aircraft attracted backers like Tencent and locked in customers, including an order for 100 electric jets from Saudi Arabia. In 2021, the company went public on the Nasdaq Exchange via a reverse merger with a blank-check company, SPAC Qell.
And while the company had made some progress, including powering up its first full-scale prototype, it was still years away from delivering its product.
In October, Lilium said it would file for insolvency — the U.S. equivalent of bankruptcy — after failing to raise emergency money from the German government. Under insolvency, Lilium lost control of its subsidiaries, which includes Lilium eAircraft. KPMG was handling the sale process.