Wisk Aero has acquired software verification and validation (V&V) company Verocel, whose expertise in supporting the certification of high-integrity aerospace software and the qualification of V&V tools will play a key role in Wisk's ongoing effort to certify its Generation 6 autonomous, electric air taxi.

For the past 25 years, the Verocel team has been leading the V&V of high-integrity software products within the aerospace industry. The team has deep expertise in DO-178C and is a member of industry standards committees for high-integrity software including RTCA/Special Committee, EUROCAE Working Group and the FAA's Overarching Properties Working Group. Additionally, the qualified Verocel toolset, VeroTrace, provides a baseline for software certification requirements definition, tracking and FAA submittals. This specialty expertise creates an enduring capability at Wisk that supports both the certification of the Generation 6 aircraft as well as future software developments at The Boeing Company.

“High-integrity software development is critical for our mission to certify an autonomous, electric aircraft with V&V being a significant portion of the total software certification effort,” says CEO Brian Yutko. “Verocel's specialised and talented team will bring with them deep experience and rigour, helping to accelerate our autonomous certification project that is already well underway. We are thrilled to have this talented team join Wisk.”

Verocel has a proven history with over 160 projects for over 25 customers including previous work with The Boeing Company. In addition to software development and V&V services, it also develops and produces the safety computers for the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), an air navigation system that enhances GPS accuracy and integrity to enable aircraft to safely navigate all over the world today. Over 50 highly specialised software engineers, based in Westford Massachusetts and Poznan, Poland join Wisk through this acquisition.

“Wisk is a perfect alignment for Verocel, both in the long and short term,” says president Jim Chelini. “Not only is this a chance to directly apply our expertise to the certification of a groundbreaking technology, but this is also an incredible opportunity for Verocel talent to excel within Wisk and the broader Boeing ecosystem long term.”

Verocel will continue to deliver against customer commitments in addition to ramping up on the Wisk Generation 6 certification programme.