Larry Page’s flying car company Pivotal loses its CEO
Sean O'Kane, CEO of Larry Page-backed flying car company Pivotal, has stepped down, with aviation executive Mike Ross taking over as interim CEO.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Sean O'Kane has stepped down as CEO of flying car company Pivotal
- Aviation executive and board member Mike Ross takes over as interim CEO
- Pivotal's BlackFly aircraft recently completed its first real-world emergency response
Pivotal, the flying car and electric aircraft startup backed by Google co-founder Larry Page, is undergoing a major leadership change as CEO Sean O'Kane has left the company. The departure marks a pivotal moment for the firm as it navigates the highly competitive advanced air mobility sector.
To maintain operational continuity, the company's board has appointed Mike Ross to step in as interim CEO. Ross is an experienced aviation executive who joined Pivotal’s board of directors in November 2025. Former CEO O'Kane did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding his departure from the firm.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
On the product development front, Pivotal has spent years engineering an aircraft named BlackFly, which is tailored specifically for defense and first-responder missions. Just last month, BlackFly was deployed for an emergency response in North Carolina, marking its very first operational use in the field.
According to the company, BlackFly beat a conventional ambulance traveling in parallel to the emergency call by a remarkable 20 minutes. Furthermore, Pivotal reports that the BlackFly aircraft has successfully completed more than 10,000 flights throughout its rigorous testing lifecycle.
Executive departures in deep-tech startups often coincide with critical transitions from R&D phases to commercialization and operational scaling. For Pivotal, real-world deployments such as emergency medical responses serve as crucial validation for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) technology, showcasing its potential to bypass ground traffic limitations under regulatory frameworks like the FAA's integration program.
Pivotal remains a key player in the sector, having been selected for the Federal Aviation Administration’s eVTOL Integration Pilot Program, an initiative designed to expand testing and accelerate the integration of such innovative aircraft across the United States.
Source: TechCrunch
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