Lilium reported in October 2024 that two of its main German operating subsidiaries did not have enough money to continue normal operations. They entered insolvency proceedings days later. In October 2025, the insolvency administrator said Lilium’s patents and registered intellectual property had been sold to Archer Aviation; that sale does not establish that Archer bought or restarted Lilium’s aircraft business. The latest company-specific updates available for this account are dated October 15, 2025, so the status of remaining assets and any later operational revival is not established here.
Why did Lilium run out of money?
The immediate crisis was a funding gap. In a filing dated October 24, 2024, Lilium N.V. said it could not raise enough funding for Lilium GmbH and Lilium eAircraft GmbH to continue operations in line with past practice. The company described their available cash as limited. Their managing directors had determined that the subsidiaries were overindebted and were, or would become, unable to pay liabilities as they fell due. Lilium’s October 2024 filing set out the company’s account.
Lilium had been pursuing government-backed financing. On October 17, it said it had received an indication that Germany’s federal budget committee would not approve a €50 million guarantee for a contemplated €100 million convertible loan through KfW. Lilium also said it had not reached an agreement in principle with Bavaria for a separate guarantee of at least €50 million. Neither proposed arrangement supplied the funding the company said it needed. Tagesschau’s contemporaneous report covered the financing debate; Lilium’s filing is the primary source for its stated funding needs and the status of the discussions.
For context, Tagesschau reported that Lilium had spent almost €200 million in the first half of 2024 and had planned first customer deliveries for 2026. Those were period-specific reported spending and schedule figures, not evidence of current spending or a current delivery plan.
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What happened after Lilium warned it might cease operations?
October and November 2024: insolvency filings
On October 28, Lilium GmbH and Lilium eAircraft GmbH filed for insolvency under German law and applied for self-administration. A later company filing said the court approved the proceedings. Lilium N.V., the holding company, separately filed a motion for regular insolvency on November 6; the court appointed a preliminary insolvency administrator on November 8, according to that filing. These were related but distinct proceedings involving the operating subsidiaries and the parent company. Lilium’s later SEC filing recounts the filings and court actions.
December 2024: a conditional aircraft agreement
Lilium disclosed a binding sales agreement with The Ambitious Group for eight Lilium Jets, with an option for six more. But implementation depended on Lilium GmbH successfully returning to solvency, so the announcement is not evidence that aircraft were delivered. Lilium also reported that ASL Group cancelled a delivery-slot reservation agreement for six aircraft. The company filing describes both developments.
March and October 2025: proceedings and patent sale
According to PLUTA, the firm associated with the insolvency administrator, Lilium GmbH and Lilium Aerospace GmbH moved from self-administration to regular insolvency proceedings in March 2025. On October 15, 2025, PLUTA reported that the administrator had sold Lilium’s patents and registered intellectual property rights to Archer Aviation and that sales of remaining assets would continue. PLUTA described the portfolio as comprising more than 300 patents and the purchase price as being in the low-to-mid double-digit millions of euros. PLUTA’s account also quoted insolvency administrator Ivo-Meinert Willrodt: “After lengthy negotiations in a complex transaction process, Archer prevailed in the bidding process.“
Did Archer buy Lilium?
Archer announced a winning bid of €18 million for approximately 300 patent assets. PLUTA independently reported the sale but used a broader price description and referred to more than 300 patents. Archer’s announcement is the source for its €18 million figure and its approximate asset count; the two descriptions should not be treated as identical counts.
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The reported transaction was for patents and registered intellectual property rights. It does not establish that Archer acquired Lilium’s entire operating business, took over its aircraft program, or restarted production. Archer’s statements about future uses of the technology are the acquirer’s plans, not proof that Lilium resumed operations.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is Lilium still operating?
The available updates establish that Lilium’s main German operating subsidiaries entered insolvency proceedings and that their patents and registered intellectual property were later sold. PLUTA said in October 2025 that sales of remaining assets would continue. The company-specific updates available for this account stop on October 15, 2025; they do not establish the eventual outcome of all remaining asset sales or whether the aircraft program resumed by October 4, 2026. Lilium’s October 2024 warning was a disclosure about the crisis then, not a new announcement in 2026.
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