Aloft
Seattle, US · Founded 2020 · Delaware corporation · 18 employees on LinkedIn · 8 known investors
Find your way into Aloft
199 people in our graph share verified history with the Aloft team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.
Jackson Heddyunlockedknows Joshua Ziering · together at Arizona State University (overlapped)
×2knows the team · via FutureAdvisor
knows the team · via MightyHive
×5knows the team · via Texas Christian University
knows the team · via Lucidworks
×2knows the team · via Thunderbird School of Global Management
Aloft operates an FAA-approved airspace and fleet management platform for drone operations, offering LAANC authorizations, airspace advisories, mission planning, and fleet tracking. It serves individual drone pilots, enterprise UAS programs, developers, and government agencies, and is now part of Versaterm with a focus on public safety drone operations.
Founders & leadership
Aloft was founded in 2020 by Yongxing Deng, Joshua Ziering, and Jon Hegranes.
YD
Yongxing DengCo-founder
JZ
Joshua ZieringinFounderJoshua Ziering is the founder of Aloft, an FAA-approved airspace and fleet management platform for drone operations that was acquired by Versaterm. He holds FAA Part 61 and Part 107 certificates, has 15 years of experience piloting manned and unmanned aircraft, and is a founding member of the FAA Unmanned Aviation Safety Team.
JH
Jon HegranesinFounder & CEO (Aloft Acquired by Versaterm)2015–2026Jon Hegranes founded Aloft in 2015, building an FAA-approved UAS Service Supplier and LAANC network for real-time airspace authorizations and drone operations; the company was acquired by Versaterm in 2026. He has served on the FAA Drone Advisory Committee and BVLOS ARC, advising on federal drone regulations and advanced air mobility policy.
TS
Travis SoukupNamed on SEC filing
Investors · 8
Bonfire VenturesLos Angeles · $2M – $4M
Decisive PointWashington · $500K – $1M
GENIUS NYSyracuse · $500K – $1M
Kluz VenturesRockville
75 & SunnyreportedLos Angeles · $100K – $5M
Andreessen HorowitzreportedMenlo Park · $500K – $50M
Fifth Wallreported · 2 sourcesLos Angeles · $250K – $100M
MetaPropreportedNew York · $100K – $1M
Reported raises · per SEC filings
Form D private placements$22.4M disclosed across 2 rounds · 2021
▶$18.3MraisedNov 2021 · 2 investors · OtherRule 506(b)
▶$18.3MraisedNov 2021 · 2 investors · Other
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- YONGXING DENGExecutive Officer
- DAN WENHOLDDirector
- TRAVIS SOUKUPExecutive Officer, Director
- Offering amount
- $20M
- Amount sold
- $18.3M
- First sale
- Nov 2021
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$4.1MraisedMar 2021 · 21 investors · OtherRule 506(b)
▶$4.1MraisedMar 2021 · 21 investors · Other
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Yongxing DengExecutive Officer
- Travis SoukupExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Offering amount
- $4.7M
- Amount sold
- $4.1M
- First sale
- Mar 2021
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.
Competitors · 4
by search overlapDJI (大疆创新)234 shared keywordsDJI is a hardware manufacturer that designs and sells drones, handheld cameras, and stabilizers for consumers and content creators. The company operates a direct-to-consumer e-commerce store with local warehouse fulfillment in Mexico.
AutoPylot191 shared keywordsAutoPylot is a free, FAA-approved mobile and web app for drone pilots that combines airspace status (B4UFLY), LAANC authorization, weather forecasts, pre-flight checklists, fleet management, and mission logging in one platform. It serves recreational, commercial (Part 107), and government drone operators.
Drone Deploy187 shared keywordsDroneDeploy provides a robotics and AI platform used for data collection and site intelligence across construction, energy, infrastructure, and agriculture. The platform integrates aerial drones, ground robots, and AI to help field teams digitize and monitor job sites across 180 countries.
Airspace Link181 shared keywordsAirspace Link provides a unified platform (AirHub Portal) for airspace security, drone operations management, and air traffic coordination, serving government agencies, defense organizations, and commercial enterprises operating unmanned aircraft systems.
Companies competing with Aloft for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
In the news
Frequently asked questions
- What does Aloft do?
- Aloft operates an FAA-approved airspace and fleet management platform for drone operations, offering LAANC authorizations, airspace advisories, mission planning, and fleet tracking. It serves individual drone pilots, enterprise UAS programs, developers, and government agencies, and is now part of Versaterm with a focus on public safety drone operations.
- Who founded Aloft?
- Aloft was founded by Yongxing Deng, Joshua Ziering, Jon Hegranes in 2020.
- Who are Aloft's investors?
- Aloft's investors include Bonfire Ventures, Decisive Point, GENIUS NY, Kluz Ventures, 75 & Sunny, Andreessen Horowitz, Fifth Wall, MetaProp.
- How much funding has Aloft raised?
- Aloft has disclosed $22.4M raised across 2 rounds.
- Where is Aloft headquartered?
- Aloft is headquartered in Seattle, US.