Boeing agrees to sell Wisk, Insitu and SkyGrid businesses to Archer Aviation in a bid to refocus on core operations

Boeing has agreed to sell three aviation and autonomy-related units associated with its efforts in emerging aircraft and drone technologies to Archer Aviation, according to a report published by Yahoo Finance and carried by Quartz. The transaction is described as moving Wisk, Insitu and SkyGrid into Archer’s control, while Boeing pursues a narrower focus on its core businesses.

The reported agreement centers on three distinct lines of technology. Wisk is tied to air taxi concepts, Insitu is associated with unmanned aerial systems and drone-related operations, and SkyGrid is linked in the report to air traffic management. Taken together, the three businesses reflect Boeing’s broader bet that future aviation growth could come from new kinds of aircraft, autonomy and supporting infrastructure.

For Archer Aviation, the reported structure would not just be a purchase of assets. The account says the deal includes an equity stake for Boeing, meaning Boeing would retain a financial interest in Archer rather than exiting entirely. Details of the equity percentage, governance terms, and valuation were not provided in the report summary referenced for this story.

For Boeing, the transaction is framed as part of a refocusing effort. Boeing’s leadership has previously pushed the company to prioritize programs and customers that align most directly with its established strengths, including commercial aerospace production and defense-related work. This agreement, as described, fits that narrative by narrowing the set of initiatives tied to speculative or longer-duration technology development.

The sale would also reshape how both companies approach future certification, operations and commercialization. Archer is positioning itself around electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and a corresponding ecosystem. If it gains control of Wisk and other autonomy-related capabilities as the report suggests, Archer could be seeking to accelerate development, reduce duplication, and consolidate talent or intellectual property across related efforts.

Boeing’s defense-oriented presence provides additional context for why the company might choose to convert non-core holdings into liquidity and management bandwidth. SkyGrid and drone-linked capabilities, in particular, overlap with topics that sit at the intersection of aerospace, autonomy, and real-world operational constraints. Still, Boeing’s decision to move these units suggests the company viewed them as outside its most immediate priorities, at least within the timeframe implied by the transaction.

Archer, meanwhile, could be using the deal to strengthen its position in the broader “urban air mobility” stack, where flight platforms and supporting systems must function together. The report indicates that Archer would control Boeing’s air-traffic-management-related unit, which suggests a possible strategy of moving beyond aircraft alone and toward the operational layer that coordinates flights and airspace usage. However, the summary does not describe whether Archer intends to integrate SkyGrid directly into its own systems or maintain it as a separate offering.

One caveat is that the report summary does not lay out transaction terms that investors and customers typically want to see, such as the purchase price, the size of Boeing’s equity stake, whether the deal requires regulatory approvals, and what specific assets or operating entities are included. Without those details, it is not possible to determine how much of the companies’ technology or personnel would move with the sold units, or how quickly the transition could occur. Boeing also did not disclose additional specifics in the materials referenced here beyond the general description that the sale is meant to support a focus on core businesses.