Merlin IPO Raises $200 Million for Autonomous Flight Goals

Autonomous flight technology developer Merlin Labs has raised $200 million by closing its SPAC-backed business combination with Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. IV. The Boston-based start-up’s stock started trading on New York’s Nasdaq market on Tuesday.

The initial public offering transaction is backed by what Merlin said is a fully committed private investment in public equity agreement anchored by Inflection Point. Existing backers including Baillie Gifford—and several new institutional investors—are supporting the deal.

The company is working to deploy its Merlin Pilot AI-powered autonomous flight system on a variety of commercial and military aircraft. Its prospective partners include the U.S. Air Force, which is considering options for next-generation uncrewed aircraft and also for pilotless operations with existing platforms such as the KC-135 Stratotanker. Civil use cases could include cargo flights with aircraft such as the Cessna Grand Caravan.

Announcing the planned flotation in August 2025, Merlin indicated that it hoped to raise $385 million. At the time, CEO and founder Matt George warned that the U.S. risked falling behind in the race to bring autonomous aircraft to market, with Chinese companies apparently making faster progress.

According to George, Merlin is challenging what he called the “human centricity” of aviation design and engineering. “We believe those shifts create a massive economic and industrial opportunity,” he commented. “We are working with our customers and partners to identify all the ways that assured autonomy can solve real problems and meaningfully improve mission execution and outcomes. We hope our investors will appreciate and understand our methodical approach to innovating and building for the long term.”