A rendering of the TriFan 600 being developed by XTI Aerospace. (Instagram)
A company operating near the Centennial Airport that has spent the past dozen years designing an airplane that takes off like a helicopter must now contend with a $9 million lawsuit from a lender.
XTI Aerospace, which is publicly traded, denies owing money to Auctus, a small Boston hedge fund, and told shareholders May 19 that its finances are stable and improving.
“We intend to vigorously defend against any and all claims,” it wrote in an SEC filing.
The TriFan 600 will be a vertical takeoff and landing, or VTOL, airplane that will seat six passengers, lift off from helipads or short runways, and fly for nearly 1,000 miles. XTI anticipates it will be used for business and commuter travel, or as an air ambulance.
The company does not expect to deliver the TriFan 600 until 2030 at the earliest, according to its latest SEC filing. In the meantime, it has been testing a model of the TriFan, taking pre-orders, and raising millions of dollars from investors, the SEC report says.
The company spent $12.9 million more than it took in during the first three months of this year. Its SEC filing cautions shareholders: “There can be no assurances that the company will ever earn revenues sufficient to support its operations, or that it will ever be profitable.”
“The company’s recurring losses and utilization of cash in its operations are indicators of going concern issues,” it states. “However, the company’s current liquidity position was favorably impacted by the cash raised…approximately $23.3 million” in the first quarter.
CEO Scott Pomeroy added in a statement, “XTI entered 2025 with strong momentum, advancing the development of the TriFan 600 while improving our financial position.”
XTI Aerospace had $8 million on hand at the end of the first quarter and claims that it holds almost no interest-bearing debt. Auctus, however, sees matters differently.
The hedge fund says that in 2021 it loaned $5 million to a company called Xeriant, which later agreed to merge with XTI. The loan was to be repaid within one year; it has been four years.
The merger ultimately didn’t happen, but XTI says it has a “joint venture” with Xeriant.
Auctus is suing XTI for breach of contract in Arapahoe District Court and seeking $9 million. XTI has told the SEC it doesn’t believe it inherited Xeriant’s debt through the partnership.
Meanwhile, Xeriant is suing XTI in a New York City federal court. It claims that XTI fraudulently convinced it to merge with XTI by claiming the TriFan would cost $250 million to build rather than $750 million, benefited from the $5.5 million and technical expertise that Xeriant brought to the project, and then backed out of the merger. Xeriant is suing for $500 million.
“The case is in its early stages of discovery,” XTI told shareholders May 19. “XTI denies the allegations of wrongdoing…and is vigorously defending against the lawsuit.”
