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Since the last two decades, demand for air travel has dramatically increased, with the increasing number of global airplane passengers. In addition, international business travel has expanded post-pandemic. During the same period, aircraft technology and material design have significantly improved in areas including aviation fuel, carbon fiber, and software.
With improving technology and rising demand, the return of supersonic travel can also offer several perks, faster travel, reduced post-flight fatigue, increased accessibility to remote locations, and more.
Boom Supersonic, an American-based company, is transforming air travel by manufacturing the fastest supersonic airliners. Let’s dive deep to uncover everything about Boom Supersonic, from its founding story to future plans.
Boom Supersonic – Company Highlights
| Company Name | Boom Supersonic |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado, United States |
| Sector | Aerospace Industry |
| Founders | Blake Scholl, Joe Wilding, and Joshua Krall |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Valuation | $1 billion (2020) |
| Website | Boomsupersonic.com |
About Boom Supersonic
Boom Supersonic – Industry
Boom Supersonic – Founders and Team
Boom Supersonic – Startup Story
Boom Supersonic – Mission and Vision
Boom Supersonic – Business and Revenue Model
Boom Supersonic – Products and Services
Boom Supersonic – Challenges Faced
Boom Supersonic – Funding and Investors
Boom Supersonic – Investments
Boom Supersonic – Growth
Boom Supersonic – Partners
Boom Supersonic – Awards and Achievements
Boom Supersonic – Competitors
Boom Supersonic – Future Plan
About Boom Supersonic
Boom Supersonic is a Denver, Colorado-based company building supersonic airliners designed for speed, sustainability, and safety. It’s a commercial airplane manufacturer designing and building passenger aircraft while serving customers worldwide. Moreover, the company is making supersonic aircraft affordable for business travel.
Boom Supersonic – Industry
Boom Supersonic’s primary industry is the aerospace industry, the global market size of which grew to $278.43 billion in 2023 from $261.12 billion in 2022, at a CAGR of 6.6%. Furthermore, the global market is projected to grow to $358.44 billion in 2027, at a noteworthy CAGR of 6.5%.
Although during Covid-19, the aerospace industry witnessed a halt in growth, the overall economic growth of developing or emerging economies is expected to drive market growth. Some leading companies in the aerospace industry include Airbus Group SE, The Boeing Company, Raytheon Technologies Corporation, General Electric Company, and many others.
Boom Supersonic – Founders and Team
Blake Scholl, Joe Wilding, and Josh Krall are the co-founders of Boom Supersonic.
Blake Scholl
Blake Scholl is the co-founder and CEO of Boom Supersonic. He earned a B.S. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University. Blake worked at Amazon for almost five years. Then he co-founded Kima Labs in January 2010, and the company was acquired in February 2012. Next, he worked at Groupon as Senior Director and co-founded Boom Supersonic in April 2014.
Joe Wilding
Joe Wilding co-founded Boom Supersonic. He graduated from Wichita State University with a M.S. in Aerospace Engineering. He is the ex-Founding Partner of Answer Engineering, LLP, and ex-Co-Founder and ex-CTO of Boom Supersonic. Currently, Joe is a Chief Engineer at Wilding Aerospace, Partner at OpenAtlas, and Chief Engineer at Cosmic Aerospace.
Joshua Krall
Joshua Krall co-founded Boom Supersonic. He completed B.S. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University. He was the Founder and CTO of HelloCar and Director of Engineering of Groupon. Joshua worked as Co-founder and VP of Technology at Boom Supersonic till January 2020. Currently, he is the Partner at OpenAtlas and Co-founder and CTO of Puck.
Boom Supersonic Team
- Kathy Savitt – President and Chief Business Officer
- Stephen Weiland – Chief Financial Officer
- Brian Durrence – Chief Technology Officer
- Bob Stoher – Chief Marketing Officer
Boom Supersonic is a team of over 150 full-time employees.
Boom Supersonic – Startup Story
Boom Supersonic was co-founded by Blake Scholl, Joe Wilding, and Joshua Krall in 2014. Blake Scholl had been interested in planes since childhood when his parents took him to watch turboprop Cessnas taking off near their house in Cincinnati, Ohio. Scholl got inspired after seeing Concorde in a museum and became obsessed with finding out how to enable a supersonic renaissance. He earned a private pilot license in 2008 with his interest in aviation.
After two years as a Senior Director at Groupon, he co-founded Boom Supersonic in 2014 with Joe Wilding and Joshua Krall. After many weeks of research, he determined that supersonic travel was possible and hired aerospace engineers to turn his vision into reality.
In 2017, Japan Airlines collaborated with Boom Supersonic to purchase 20 aircraft. XB-1 demonstrator aircraft was formally rolled out publicly in October 2020. In 2021, the company announced the plan of Overture flight testing in 2026. Boom Supersonic secured a commercial agreement with United Airlines by the end of 2021, and in 2022, the company announced to open its first supersonic airliner manufacturing facility in Greensboro, North Caroline.
In August 2022, Boom Supersonic and American Airlines signed a commercial agreement to buy 20 Overture aircraft, with an option to buy 40 more aircraft. In December 2022, it announced Symphony, a new propulsion engine for the Overture. The following year, in January 2023, the company started constructing its Overture Superfactory in Greensboro, North Caroline.
Boom Supersonic – Mission and Vision
Boom Supersonic envisions bringing families, businesses, and cultures closer with supersonic travel and making the world dramatically accessible. In addition, its goal is to deliver passengers via Overture anywhere in the world within four hours for $100.
Boom Supersonic – Business and Revenue Model
Boom Supersonic’s business model primarily involves designing, building, and selling supersonic aircraft, including XB-1 and Overture, to airlines. The cost of each Overture aircraft is estimated to be $200 million. However, since the company is not done building Overture aircraft, the company takes modest down payments from airline customers for orders of its initial number of aircraft. In addition, Boom Supersonic provides its customers the option to buy more contingent when the company meets industry-standard operating, performance, and safety requirements.
Boom Supersonic – Products and Services
The projects of Boom Supersonic are as follows:
- Overture
- Symphony
- XB-1
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Boom Supersonic – Challenges Faced
In 2022, Boom Supersonic lost its jet engine partner for Overture supersonic jet. The company entered into an ‘engagement agreement’ with Rolls-Royce for supersonic jet engines in 2020. However, the latter left the project. Moreover, the project lacked interest from other major engine manufacturers, including Pratt & Whitney, Honeywell, GE Aviation, and Safran Aircraft Engines.
Overture Superfactory Construction Underway
Boom Supersonic – Funding and Investors
Boom Supersonic has successfully completed 14 funding rounds and raised $147.5 million. Its latest funding round – Venture Series Round, was conducted on March 30, 2023. Seraph Group, Y Combinator, Palm Drive Ventures, Eight Partners, RRE Ventures, and 8VC are some investors backing the company.
| Date | Round | Number of Investors | Money Raised | Lead Investor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 30, 2023 | Venture Series | 1 | – | Momentum Ventures |
| June 1, 2022 | Series C | 1 | – | – |
| December 1, 2021 | Debt Financing | – | – | – |
| January 18, 2021 | Venture Round | 3 | $45 million | Prime Movers Lab |
| March 24, 2021 | Series C | 1 | – | – |
| December 15, 2020 | Series C | 3 | $50 million | Celesta Capital |
| April 17, 2020 | Venture Round | – | $3.1 million | – |
| April 1, 2019 | Series B | 11 | – | Emerson Collective |
| December 1, 2018 | Series B | 1 | – | – |
| December 5, 2017 | Corporate Round | 2 | $10 million | Japan Airlines (JAL) |
Boom Supersonic – Investments
On January 25, 2023, Boom Supersonic invested in Roots Homes.
Boom Supersonic – Growth
In 2020, Boom Supersonic raised $50 million in funding, bringing its valuation to over $1 billion.
Boom Supersonic – Partners
Boom Supersonic has partnered with the below-listed airlines, high-speed government transport, production and facilities partners, suppliers, and sustainability partners:
- American Airlines
- United Airlines
- Japan Airlines
- Northrop Grumman
- U.S. Air Force
- Aernnova
- Leonardo
- GE Additive
- AIR Company
- Dimensional Energy
- Prometheus
Boom Supersonic – Awards and Achievements
Some of the awards Boom Supersonic garnered to date are as follows:
- Nominated for the prestigious 24th Annual Webby Awards in 2020
- TIME recognized Boom XB-1 Supersonic Demonstrator as one of the Best Inventions of 2021
- Recognized as one of the Top 50 US Startups by LinkedIn in 2021
- Named EY winner by Denver Business Journal
Boom Supersonic – Competitors
Some companies giving tough competition to Boom Supersonic include:
- Hermeus
- Aerion Supersonic
- Exosonic
- Spike Aerospace
- Destinus
Boom Supersonic – Future Plan
Overture is slated to roll out in 2025, fly till 2026, and carry passengers till 2029. The company is committed to achieving net zero carbon by 2025 and zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. Boom Supersonic plans to hire over 2,400 workers at the Superfactory by 2032.
FAQs
What is Boom Supersonic?
Boom Supersonic is a Denver, Colorado-based company building supersonic airliners designed for speed, sustainability, and safety. It’s a commercial airplane manufacturer designing and building passenger aircraft while serving customers worldwide.
Who founded Boom Supersonic?
Blake Scholl, Joe Wilding, and Josh Krall are the co-founders of Boom Supersonic.
Who are the main competitors of Boom Supersonic?
The main competitors of Boom Supersonic include Hermeus, Aerion Supersonic, Exosonic, Spike Aerospace, and Destinus.