Talk:Beta Technologies

Not to be confused with the 'other' Beta Technologies...

... which is a virtual world 3D content creator and solution provider, using the Second Life and OpenSimulator platforms, and was established in New York, NY, back in early 2008.

They're easily confused with BETA, the aircraft company, although they have absolutely nothing in common except the name (and both were registered in the United States of America, although on different states).

Also, despite having been around for a decade longer, Beta Technologies (the virtual world company) does not conform to WP:42.

Obligatory disclaimer: I am a member of Beta Technologies, the virtual world content providers :)

— Gwyneth Llewelyn (talk) 02:12, 11 February 2023 (UTC)

@GwynethLlewelyn As you have had an account here for a long time, you are probably aware that Wikipedia would use a WP:Hatnote to distinguish the articles if one were ever to be created for the company you are associated with. You could even draft such an article, provided you mention your WP:COI and can meet WP:42. Mike Turnbull (talk) 13:43, 11 February 2023 (UTC)

@Michael D. Turnbull — thanks for the tip, but I'm also trying to keep some consistency with company entries on Wikipedia, and 'my' company is simply way too small too meet the WP:42 criteria. Thanks for the offer, though :-)

Actually, the whole point of my comment (which for some reason was incomplete...) is just because I get several requests for BETA (the aircraft company) thinking they're getting in touch with them. Therefore, if any of those try to look the company up on Wikipedia, they will at least have a comment that says: 'sorry, do not confuse the two companies!' — even if, as said, one of them is worthy of reference, the other not really :) — Gwyneth Llewelyn (talk) 16:20, 15 February 2023 (UTC)

Edit request

I have an affiliation with BETA and understand that I'm not supposed to edit directly. I'd like to request numerous edits, some minor and some major, to update the article and keep it current. Please let me know if there are any questions or concerns.

• Please change "charging network" in the product section of the infobox to "charging infrastructure", to be more accurate and differentiate the equipment from regular charging networks like with EVs. This article explains why infrastructure is more accurate.
• The company is now developing electric conventional take-off and landing (eCTOL) aircraft. I'd like to change the lead and add an updated source.
  

'''Beta Technologies''' (stylized as BETA Technologies), is a [[Burlington, Vermont]]-based [[aerospace]] manufacturer developing both [[eVTOL|electric vertical take off and landing]] (eVTOL) aircraft as well as electric conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) aircraft for the cargo medical passenger and military aviation industries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.axios.com/2023/03/14/electric-airplanes-beta-technologies-ectol-certification|last=Freedman|first=Andrew|date=March 14, 2023|title=Meet Beta Technologies' new electric plane|website=Axios|language=en|access-date=June 23, 2023}}</ref>

• The second sentence can start differently, to indicate that the equipment is multimodal, and it's meant to be universal, so not specially designed.
  

The company has also developed a network of multimodal charging infrastructure to support their aircraft,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/beta-technologies-plans-a-web-of-charging-stations-across-the-eastern-us-to-power-its-electric-planes/Content?oid=36730885 |title=Beta Technologies Plans a Web of Charging Stations Across the Eastern U.S. to Power Its Electric Planes |last=McCallum|first=Kevin|website=Seven Days |date=October 19, 2022 |access-date=September 1, 2023}}</ref>

• The pilot training sentence would more accurately say in addition to pilot training programs for future electric aircraft pilots and maintainers.</nowiki> The bolded text is for illustrative purposes only. It's not bolded in the article.
• Please change the image syntax to describe the ALIA 250 image more accurately as a prototype: [[File:BETA Technologies ALIA 250.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|BETA Technologies' ALIA-250 eVTOL aircraft prototype]] Y
• In the March 2021 section of the history section, midway through, the Blade content should more accurately say
  

In April, [[Blade (company)|Blade Urban Air Mobility]] entered into a commitment to purchase up to 20 ALIA aircraft, becoming BETA's first passenger service customer. Y

• Two sentences later, it should more accurately say "250-400 EV aircraft per year", instead of "400 EV aircraft per year". The numbers are estimated, and a range is therefore more accurate. Y
• In the next paragraph, where it says "The partnership eventually aims to help the Army", it would be more grammatical to say "The partnership is designed to help the Army" Y
• The next eight items are updates to the history section. Text and sources are all below. I'll post it as wikitext so it's easier on the eyes.
  

In March 2022, the company hosted the United States Air Force and, for the first time, had a USAF aviator fly in a crewed qualification evaluation of an electric aircraft. Y A similar milestone was reached later that year with the an Army test pilot flying the aircraft. N Unreliable blog source. Ticks and crosses added as I update the article. Mike Turnbull (talk) 14:51, 10 September 2023 (UTC)

In April 2022, aircraft lessor Lease Corporation International (LCI) placed an order for 50 ALIA aircraft with options for up to 125 total units. Y

In May 2022, the company completed a 1,400+ mile flight from Plattsburgh, NY to Bentonville, AR. The flight included stops along the way on the company’s network of charging station infrastructure for electric vehicles. Y

In August 2022, vertical lift aircraft operator Bristow placed an order for five firm ALIA aircraft with options for an additional 50 aircraft. Y Done for today! Mike Turnbull (talk) 15:35, 10 September 2023 (UTC)

In September 2022, the company announced plans to repurpose an Energizer Battery plant in St. Albans, Vermont for use as its primary battery production and validation facility. Y but better with the later source.

In October 2022, the A250 aircraft was included in X-Plane 12, desktop simulation software developed by Laminar Research. Y

In December 2022, the company completed another multi-state cross-country flight after traveling 876 miles to UPS Worldport in Louisville, KY where the company was met by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. The same month, the company completed a FAA-sponsored 50-ft battery drop test in partnership with the National Institute of Aviation Research to inform crashworthiness regulations for the eVTOL industry. Also in December, BETA was also selected as one of four developers to be a part of Air New Zealand’s Mission NextGen aircraft development platform, and announced the signing of a letter of intent with the airline for the purchase of up to 23 aircraft. Y except the letter of intent which is routine business.

In March 2023, the company announced it was also pursuing FAA certification of a conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) variant of its ALIA aircraft, dubbed the CX300, and had received orders for the new product from Bristow, Air New Zealand, and United Therapeutics. The company also announced that FAA test FAA test pilots had flown its aircraft during a qualification evaluation earlier that year. Y Also in March, the company announced an engineering office in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to support structural engineering activities. N Should await evidence it has happened: WP:NOTCRYSTALBALL Mike Turnbull (talk) 16:14, 12 September 2023 (UTC)

• The first sentence of the technology section can be updated to add the eCTOL aircraft the company is developing.
  

eVTOL aircraft can take off and land without the use of a runway, where eCTOL still require conventional, runway-dependent operations.<ref name = "axios"/> The Axios ref is defined in the preceding paragraph.

• The second section of the technology section simplifies the description of the product lines.
  

The company’s eCTOL (fixed wing) aircraft and eVTOL aircraft share many design features, are both aircraft are powered by the same internally-developed electric pusher motor.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.axios.com/2023/03/14/electric-airplanes-beta-technologies-ectol-certification|last=Freedman|first=Andrew|date=March 14, 2023|title=Meet Beta Technologies' new electric plane|website=Axios|language=en|access-date=June 23, 2023}}</ref>

• If we split the first sentence of the third paragraph into two, I think it reads better.
  

The company uses electric motors as they are reportedly quieter and have a smaller [[carbon footprint]] with zero operational emissions compared to an equivalent gasoline engine. Electric propulsion aircraft also require less maintenance.

• The first paragraph of the products section can be expanded to describe both product lines.
  

BETA Technologies develops electric aircraft and a network of charging stations to support them. Both aircraft share many design choices, including a 50-ft wingspan, rear electric pusher motor, and general form factor.

• Please change the image description for BETA Technologies Charging Pad.jpg from "BETA Technologies charging pad for aircraft" to "BETA Technologies elevated landing pad for aircraft"
• I think the products section would flow better if the aircraft were listed first, and then the charging infrastructure. I'd also like to revise the first paragraph.
  

*ALIA-250 - The A250 is an all-electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft that uses four top-mounted lift motors and one rear pusher motor to achieve vertical capabilities as well as wing-born flight while in cruise.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.protocol.com/climate/beta-charging-app-evs-planes|last=Jenkins|first=Lisa|date=September 8, 2022|title=An electric aviation startup is building a charging network for all|website=Protocol|language=en|access-date=June 26, 2023}}</ref>
The CX300 content follows, unchanged.
Then, the Charging infrastructure section, but significantly rewritten:

• Charging infrastructure – BETA developed a line of purpose-built charging infrastructure to support the deployment of electric aircraft. As of September 2022, the company operated ten online stations across the Midwest, ranging from its headquarters in Burlington, VT to Bentonville, AR, with a few dozen more in permitting or construction stages. All BETA chargers work with ground based EVs in addition to electric aircraft. The company also develops elevated landing pads that, when coupled with chargers, provide an off-airport landing option for customers.

Thanks in advance for your help. This is a big ask, and it's much appreciated. Willguisbond (talk) 15:25, 7 September 2023 (UTC)

 Done with some minor alterations that I thought were better based on the sources. Please make any further suggestions in a separate section. Mike Turnbull (talk) 16:18, 13 September 2023 (UTC)

References

Willguisbond (talk) 15:25, 7 September 2023 (UTC)

Reply 7-SEP-2023

  Unable to review  

• Your use of the nowiki prompt has rendered most of the proposal unreadable. Please remove the prompt and resubmit the proposal. Regards,  Spintendo  22:28, 7 September 2023 (UTC)

@Spintendo Actually, I think that User:Willguisbond was trying to be helpful by adding some material looking like wikitext to be copied directly from the rendered text, using the source editor. Anyway, there's a lot to do here, so I'm going to start slowly and add done/not done tags to individual items as I go through them. I'll do items that expand the body of the article first, leaving the lead for last. If you wish to assist, please do so. Mike Turnbull (talk) 14:06, 10 September 2023 (UTC)

Edit request 9/25/23

Thank you for making the changes. I also noticed you removed the funding information from the Finances section. This is important information for readers because it shows the size and scope of the the company's business. Absent a dedicated funding section, I'd like to request that the information be placed chronologically in the history section. I rewrote it with better sourcing. The first paragraph would go in the middle of the sixth paragraph (In March 2021...), and the second item would go in the eighth paragraph after the current April 2022 item. Thank you. Willguisbond (talk) 14:49, 25 September 2023 (UTC)

In March 2021, the company raised $143 million in venture funding from undisclosed sources. In May 2021, the company raised $368 million in Series A financing, with Fidelity Management & Research leading the round alongside investors Redbird Capital and Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund.

In April 2022, BETA announced they had raised an additional $375 million in Series B financing led by TPG Rise Climate and Fidelity Management & Research alongside Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund.

References

Willguisbond (talk) 14:49, 25 September 2023 (UTC)

 Declined Both of these sources are based on press releases issued by the company:

1. techcrunch: "The new capital is the second round of funding announced by the company this year"
2. axios: "Beta Technologies, a Burlington, Vermont-based electric aviation company, announced the close of a $375 million Series B funding round on Wednesday"

Wikipedia prefers information that originates from reliable, secondary sourcing — not from information which originates from company press releases (regardless of who publishes it). Reliable sources which merely repeat company announced information is promotional in nature. Regards,  Spintendo  20:28, 25 September 2023 (UTC)

Edit Request 10/24/24

I have a few requests for changes to this page to ensure the article remains current. Thanks in advance for your help.

The company updated its headcount. Please change the infobox and end of the lead.

For the infobox, I'm including the ref syntax so you can just cut and paste:

num_employees = 650 (April 2024)<ref name=burlington>https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2024/04/02/beta-technologies-will-hold-first-hiring-day-event-in-april-electric-airplanes/73118500007/</ref>

For end of lead:

The company was founded by Kyle Clark in 2017 and by 2024 had 650 employees.<ref name=burlington/>

Since I'm swapping out the main ref for the headcount, we need to put the full ref into the end of the March 2023 section.

−

It also opened an office in [[Montreal]].<ref name=sevendays/>

+

It also opened an office in [[Montreal]].<ref name=sevendays>{{cite news |url=https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/beta-technologies-opens-satellite-office-in-montreal/Content?oid=37762023 |title=Beta Technologies Opens Satellite Office in Montréal |last=Brouwer|first=Derek |work=Seven Days |location=Vermont |date=March 9, 2023 |access-date=September 13, 2023}}</ref>

I'd also like to rewrite a sentence to make it more accurate, and update the history. Please add this information after the March 2023 history section.

In October 2023, the company opened a 188,500-square-foot production facility in South Burlington, Vermont. The facility is reportedly capable of producing up to 300 aircraft per year, with a planned Phase II buildout intended to double in size.Y Done to here.

In July 2024, the company announced that it had completed several military exercises in collaboration with the Department of Defense, for the Air Force and Air National Guard.N Not done: Company press release with relatively unimportant information.

In April 2024, its ALIA-250 proof of concept aircraft completed a piloted transition from going from hover to wing-borne flight and then back to hover before landing. Also in April 2024, the company announced that it had received UL certification for its 320kw Charge Cube.futureflight/2024-04-19/betas-charge-cube-earns-ul-safety-certification

https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/futureflight/2024-04-19/betas-charge-cube-earns-ul-safety-certification Y Complete to here. Mike Turnbull (talk) 21:17, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

In September 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded the company with a $20 million contract to install electric aircraft chargers at 22 sites across the East and Gulf coasts. Also in September, the company unveiled the prototype of its first passenger carrying ALIA aircraft, capable of carrying five passengers.Y

In the first sentence of the product section, can you change the text to make it more clear?

−

BETA Technologies develops eVTOL aircraft and a network of charging stations to support them.

+

BETA Technologies develops electric aircraft and a network of charging stations to support them.

Y Mike Turnbull (talk) 21:43, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

Lastly, can you swap out the current photos for the updated ones I uploaded? They replace, in order, the aircraft, landing tower and charging tower photos.

• File:BETA_Technologies_Production_Facility.jpg
• File:BETA_Technologies_A250_eVTOL_Prototype_Aircraft.jpg
• File:BETA_Technologies_A250_Electric_Aircraft_Charging.jpg

References

Thanks, @Rsschulz Rsschulz (talk) 01:40, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

@Rsschulz I'm going to start on these requests in a similar way to one of the sections above, marking each part as done or not, with comments. Meanwhile, please ensure that the image files on Commons are confirmed to the Commons:VRT volunteers to have the permission of the photographer for the licensing. See File:BETA_Technologies_Small_Charging_Tower.jpg for how that team marks files which have been correctly uploaded by one person who isn't the actual photographer. Then I'll be happy to add them as you suggest. Mike Turnbull (talk) 20:04, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

@Michael D. Turnbull Thank you for making the changes thus far. I saw that you didn't include the details on the July military deployment as it came from a press release. I have attached two articles here which I hope provide the information necessary to include that important detail to our company's relationship with the military and history. https://www.revolution.aero/news/2024/07/15/beta-completes-two-new-deployments-us-air-force/

https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/futureflight/2024-07-15/us-air-force-deploys-betas-alia-electric-aircraft-prototype

I have asked our photographer to email the VRT team and will let you know once the marking has been updated.

Thank you again for all your work this far. Rsschulz (talk) 21:42, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

Yes, the revolution.aero source is fine and I've add a sentence. Maybe you would like to think of parts of the "history" section that now look out-of-date or less important given more recent developments and we can cut some bits out. Commons usually allow about a week before deleting images where they don't have full evidence of complying with the rules, so you have at least that time to get the email done. In the assumption that all will be well, I'll add the images tomorrow: it's now late at night here in the UK! Mike Turnbull (talk) 22:04, 25 October 2024 (UTC)

 Done. I've placed the images into the article and linked just the filenames above for reference. Mike Turnbull (talk) 11:05, 26 October 2024 (UTC)

Thank you for your work on this it is looking significantly more accurate and up to date. Agreed on the history, I will thread some potential changes. Rsschulz (talk) 19:21, 27 October 2024 (UTC)

@Michael D. Turnbull one detail that jumps out is under products - A250 - passenger configuration: it states capable of carrying six passengers while recent articles claim five passengers and one pilot. Is this something that could be updated? https://techcrunch.com/2024/09/30/beta-technologies-unveils-first-passenger-carrying-electric-aircraft/

That "six" seems to have been a typo. The original cite says five passengers, as does the cite for the final paragraph in the history section. I've updated it. Mike Turnbull (talk) 12:48, 28 October 2024 (UTC)

Also in products - charging infrastructure: the number of stations and locations has been updated. I have included a potential updated line below with sourcing. "By September 2024, the company had opened 32 sites along the east and gulf coast, with at least another 50 locations in the works." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/futureflight/2024-09-19/beta-installs-electric-aircraft-chargers-three-florida

Thank you for your time Rsschulz (talk) 19:57, 27 October 2024 (UTC)

Added that update, without the "east and gulf coast", which the source doesn't mention. Mike Turnbull (talk) 12:48, 28 October 2024 (UTC)

Wonderful thank you! Here's some recent news from today.

"In October 2024, BETA Technologies announced it had raised $318 million in its latest funding round, led by the Qatar Investment Authority, bringing total funding to over $1 billion."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-10-31/electric-aircraft-startup-beta-raises-318-million-in-new-round?utm_source=google&utm_medium=bd&cmpId=google Rsschulz (talk) 20:49, 31 October 2024 (UTC)

I know this is exciting for the company but it's all what would be called WP:RUNOFTHEMILL here. All start-ups have funding rounds and this is a primary source based on a company announcement. I'd want to see a secondary commentary that this was unusual or significant in some way. Maybe in a few days there will be such a report. Please start a new section on this Talk Page when you have another suggestion (using a new {{edit request}}) just to keep things tidy. Mike Turnbull (talk) 12:29, 1 November 2024 (UTC)

Totally understand, sounds good. Thank you Rsschulz (talk) 14:36, 1 November 2024 (UTC)