Pentagram reimagines Vertical's brand as eVTOL start-up unveils Valo aircraft

Last Thursday, amid the glass towers of Canary Wharf, British eVTOL manufacturer Vertical unveiled Valo, its fully electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle. At the same time, the Bristol-based company revealed a refreshed brand identity by Pentagram, designed to propel Vertical from industry insider to household name.

The Valo vehicle is ambitious by any measure. It’s a four-passenger electric aircraft with a cruise speed of 150mph, a range of up to 100 miles, and the ability to take off and land vertically. In practical terms, that means journeys like Heathrow to Canary Wharf could be cut from 52 minutes by car to just 12 minutes in the air. The long-term vision is to make urban air travel feel as routine as booking a ride-hailing app.

Pentagram partner Angus Hyland and his team were tasked with refreshing and modernising Vertical’s existing brand ahead of the Valo launch. The project encompassed brand strategy, a new verbal framework, and the naming of Valo, developed in close collaboration with Vertical’s internal stakeholders.

Crucially, the design team wasn’t starting from scratch, as Vertical already had strong brand equity, particularly in its hummingbird symbol, a visual metaphor for vertical take-off, hovering, and agile flight. Research showed that while these elements had earned credibility within the eVTOL sector, the brand remained relatively unknown outside it. With the case for electric vertical flight already well established, the challenge became one of visibility and accessibility.

Pentagram’s strategic focus shifted towards democratising the vision. Rather than positioning eVTOL as a futuristic novelty, the brand needed to imagine a world where urban life is no longer constrained by traffic. Pentagram says the goal was to create a more democratic, accessible brand while still reflecting the “high quality, innovation and safety standards” at the heart of the business.

That essentially means they set out to normalise eVTOL as a viable mode of transport, without losing the seriousness required of an aircraft manufacturer operating in a heavily regulated space. It’s where the idea of becoming the ‘Uber of the skies’ begins to feel less like hype and more like a considered positioning.

With that in mind, the new tagline, “To the skies”, was developed to capture both Vertical’s vision and its aspirational spirit, opening the brand to a wider audience while appealing to customers, investors and partners alike, according to Pentagram.

Visually, the hummingbird has been reimagined rather than replaced. Drawing on the curves and geometry of the Valo itself, the symbol has been simplified and streamlined, brought closer to the form of a real bird. It now sits at the heart of a more flexible identity system, paired with a new wordmark and a looser relationship between the logo elements.

Typography comes in the form of Universal Sans, a variable typeface chosen for its modern, technical and engineered feel. Elsewhere, gradients inspired by the sky at different times of day, from dawn through to dusk, run across the identity, alongside expansive sky imagery and polished product photography. A repeat pattern, derived from the distinctive ‘Y’ shape of Valo’s wings and body, adds another layer to the system.

Beyond static visuals, Pentagram developed motion principles that mirror the aircraft's movement, defining how elements behave across digital and physical touchpoints. Applications range from branding on the vehicle to launch concepts, investor materials and longer-term customer-facing campaigns, all underpinned by a comprehensive set of brand guidelines.

The Canary Wharf launch marked a clear step change for Vertical. With Valo and its new identity unveiled together, the company signalled its evolution into a more established, authoritative player, extending its reach well beyond the eVTOL sector.

Pentagram’s approach anchored the brand in engineering excellence while opening it up to a broader, more aspirational narrative, positioning Vertical not just as a technological pioneer, but as a credible contender for the future of everyday urban mobility. Who knows – it might not be long until we’re all hailing rides to the skies to beat traffic on the ground.