Zuri (concept design)

(Image credit: Zuri)

Zuri (concept design)
Zuri SE
Prague, Czech Republic
www.zuri.com

In 2017, Czech entrepreneur Michal Illich began his start-up company and conceptualized an aircraft with wings using hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) technology for advanced air mobility (AAM) between two cities (intercity flights). Illich has stated he started his company due to his frustration with the length of time it takes to fly between two fairly close cities using commercial jets.

Funding
As of October 2021, the company has raised over €2.4 million in financing. On December 16, 2024 Zuri reported they successfully completed a pre-Series A funding round, initially targeting €1.5 million but significantly oversubscribed, raising a total of €4.4 million. Notable Investors were Pale Fire Capital (Jan Barta), Boris Renski (founder of FreedomFi and Mirantis), and Matej Turek’s 10X fund. As of August 2026, the company is currently seeking €6 million in its Series A round to support the development of its hybrid VTOL aircraft.

Company history
Illich reports he has founded several companies since 1999 and as of 2010, he is both an active investor in more than 20 companies and an entrepreneur in software and hardware. The company has received funding, is currently looking for more funding and is hiring employees.

September 2017 saw the first sketch of the of the hybrid-electric VTOL passenger aircraft. In May 2018, the first subscale prototype was made to validate their aircraft design. In August 2018, a larger subscale prototype was made and flown. May of 2019 saw the testing of components for their one-seater prototype. In September 2019, wind tunnel testing was performed on a subscale aircraft model.

In December 2020, ground testing took place with a large-scale technology demonstrator. On September 20, 2021, Zuri for the first time, revealed its hybrid-electric VTOL subscale technology demonstrator at an airport near Prague for the public. On Jan. 20, 2022, Zuri unveiled its new hybrid-electric VTOL production aircraft named the Zuri 2.0. The Zuri 2.0 has two versions, the Zuri 2.0 is a passenger VTOL aircraft and the Zuri 2.0 Cargo is an air cargo VTOL aircraft.

Zuri passenger hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft (concept design)
The pictures on this web page reveals the company's passenger hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft concept design. The aircraft holds one pilot and three people with their luggage. The pilot uses redundant fly-by-wire controls and can be flow on autopilot.

The aircraft's expected maximum flight range is 700 km (435 miles), has an estimated flight time of three hours and calculated maximum cruise altitude of 3,700 m (over 12,000 ft). The aircraft has eight propellers for VTOL flight mounted on booms, has one pusher propeller for forward flight and has a hybrid-electric powertrain. In some of the graphic drawings, the aircraft has an electric tractor propeller (a front propeller) instead of a pusher propeller.

The aircraft has one high main wing, has four booms under the main wing (that the VTOL propellers are mounted on) and has an inverted U tail. There are panoramic wrap around windows designed to allow forward, left and right visibility for spectacular views, with a solid roof above the passenger compartment. The fuselage is made from carbon fiber composite to give the aircraft a high strength to low weight ratio. The aircraft has retractable tricycle wheeled landing gear.

Zuri is a VTOL airplane. Zuri has eight electric motor with big rotors. Having less rotors would be dangerous, having more would reduce efficiency. Wings allow us much faster and cheaper flight compared to copters. The upward lift on the wings means we can switch the VTOL system off during the horizontal flight. A single engine for the horizontal flight brings high efficiency and low energetic demands.

All flight phases are controller by autopilot. During vertical flight, the on-board computer controls stabilization. Its reaction speed trumps that of a human by orders of magnitude. The autopilot ensures smooth movement and compensates for the force of the wind blowing. Horizontal flight is controlled by a fly-by-wire system, similar to what's used in other modern airplanes. Zuri is not a helicopter, flying car or a common airplane.

—Zuri website

Zuri is now developing a one-seat working technology demonstrator with a wingspan of approximately 11 m (36 ft) and a weight of 900 kg (about 2,000 lb). The demonstrator has a hybrid-electric power source including modern lithium battery packs and flies between 250-300 km/h (155-186 mph). The goal is to fly the demonstrator in March or April of 2021.

The company foresees the use of their aircraft as an air taxi, for business trips and holidays (vacations). The company reminds people that some destinations require a car, airplane and boat, plus multiple security checks and baggage transfers, to get to their final destination. With the Zuri VTOL aircraft, the passengers will fly point-to-point, for a fast and easy flight to their final destination with no stops and no transfers.

Specifications:

• Aircraft type: Passenger hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft (concept design)
• Piloting: Piloted with redundant fly-by-wire and has autopilot capability
• Capacity: 3-4 people
• Cruise speed: Unknown
• Range: 500-700 km (311-435 m)
• Flight time: 3 hours maximum
• Maximum cruise altitude: 3,700 m (Over 12,000 ft)
• Propellers: 9 propellers (8 VTOL-only propellers, 1 pusher propeller)
• Electric Motors: 9 electric motors
• Power source: Next-generation hybrid powerplant unit and modern battery packs with lightweight lithium cells
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
• Windows: Panoramic windows wrap around design allowing forward, left and right visibility, for spectacular views with a solid roof above the passenger compartment
• Wings: 1 main high wing
• Tail: Twin tail booms with an inverted U tail
• Landing gear: Retractable tricycle wheeled landing gear
• Safety Features: Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP), provides safety through redundancy for its passengers and/or cargo. DEP means having multiple propellers and motors on the aircraft so if one or more motors or propellers fail, the other working motors and propellers can safely land the aircraft. The battery boxes are equipped with fireproof insulation for maximum safety. There is a redundant fly-by-wire system. Computerized vision and other sensors offer supplemental safety features to help pilots with enhanced situation awareness for maximum safety. The aircraft can land on a runway or road if it becomes necessary.

Related Aircraft:

• Zuri Cargo (production model)
• Zuri TD 1.0 (technology demonstrator)
• Zuri 2.0 (concept design)

Company Insights:

• Crunchbase
• Pitchbook
• Traxcn

Resources:

• Zuri website
• Zuri Facebook
• Zuri X (formerly Twitter)
• Zuri YouTube Channel
• Zuri Instagram
• Zuri LinkedIn
• Article: Czech startup Zuri, developing unmanned aircraft, received an investment of 600,000 euros, Tyinternety, Oct. 22, 2018
• Article: Czech startup Zuri Michal Illich gets another investment. Millions of crowns are invested by Kiwi.com in Brno, CzechCrunch, Apr. 11, 2019
• Article: Czech Zuri, developing unmanned aircraft, received 5 million from Kiwi.com Oliver Long, Tyinternety, Apr. 11, 2019
• Article: Kiwi.com invests in Zuri to help develop unmanned civilian flights, Phocus Wire, Apr. 15, 2019
• Article: Czech air taxi project to develop prototype, Aerospace Testing International, Apr. 23, 2019
• Article: Kiwi.com investing in Czech Zuri VTOL, Beam Aviation, Apr. 25, 2019
• Video: Technodat Zuri, Zuri VTOL, Oct. 13, 2020
• Video: Faster to the beach 550 km, Zuri VTOL, Oct. 16, 2020
• Article: Zuri emerges from stealth mode and shares vision for regional air mobility with its hybrid-powered VTOL aircraft, eVTOL Insights, Feb. 8, 2021
• Article: Zuri’s VTOL: An air travel revolution, Surfeo, Feb. 19, 2021