Ep. 88: Building the Superpower of Personal Flight—with David Mayman of JetPack Aviation

If you’ve ever wished you could fly, your dream is within reach. The jetpack industry, though still small, has developed to a point where a handful of startups are consistently carrying out safe flights and building businesses around the superpower most of us have daydreamed about, but never recognized as a realistic possibility. David Mayman is the founder, CEO and Chief Test Pilot of JetPack Aviation, the undisputed leader in turbine-powered, VTOL aircraft. With more than a decade of experience refining its technology, JetPack is the first company to design and manufacture a true jetpack for personal flight, creating an entirely new aviation market for individuals, corporations and military clients. Today, David joins us to discuss the business case for personal flight via jetpack. He speaks to the other players in the space, explaining why the industry is slow to grow and how to get into the business through partnerships with manufacturers. Listen in for David’s insight into the chief consumer fears around flying jetpacks and learn how close we are to engineering completely safe, autonomous machines for use by the general public! Topics Covered David’s path to JetPack Aviation Flew plane before drove, dreams of personal flight Career in commerce and investments in tech space Capital to further flight education The bureaucratic process to do a proper test flight 6 months of negotiation to fly around Statue of Liberty Much easier after establish track record The other players in the personal flight space Richard at Gravity Industries Franky at Flyboard Air Yves Rossy Why the jetpack space is slow to grow Expensive hardware ($12K to $60K/engine) Time consuming to build on own How to hack the space without capital Build relationships with manufacturers Vision of your ability to innovate The business case for jetpacks Education and entertainment (i.e.: Red Bull events) Experience Center training facility The chief consumer fears around flying jetpacks Heat of engines and flight safety Falling out of sky What needs to happen for jetpacks to be commonplace Completely safe, autonomous machines Use to commute and transport items David’s definition of success Change status quo Motivated when told can’t be done Connect with David JetPack Aviation https://jetpackaviation.com/ JetPack on Twitter https://twitter.com/jetpackaviation JetPack on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jetpackaviation JetPack on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/jetpackaviation JetPack on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jetpackaviation/ David on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmayman/ Resources 1984 Olympics Opening Ceremony https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WWDnOiQR7A AJ Forsythe https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajforsythe Gravity Industries https://gravity.co/ Zapata Flyboard Air https://zapata.com/air-products/flyboardair Yves Rossy http://www.jetman.com/loft/ Own the Sky Documentary http://paperbarkfilms.com/films/own-the-sky/ ‘What Crossing the Arctic Taught This VC About Entrepreneurship’ by Collin West https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/288830 Connect with Boost VC Boost VC Website https://www.boost.vc/ Boost VC on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/boostvc/ Boost VC on Twitter https://twitter.com/BoostVC