Merlin Labs wants to fill the sky with pilotless planes carrying cargo and passengers

Autonomous flight startup Merlin Labs is coming out of stealth mode to announce that it’s raised $25 million in funding from Google Ventures and First Round Capital. The company has also struck a deal with aviation services contractor to begin putting its pilotless plane technology into commercial operation.

The two announcements are the first steps toward Merlin Labs’ larger goal of filling the sky with pilotless planes carrying cargo and passengers. As part of its deal with Dynamic, the startup will supply its autonomous flight technology to 55 of the contractor’s King Air aircraft. Merlin is already conducting test flights with the first King Air plane outside its dedicated flight facility at the Mojave Air and Space...

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