Daniel Wiegand studied aerospace engineering at the Technical University of Munich. In 2015 he co-founded Lilium with Sebastian Born, Patrick Nathen and Matthias Meiner.
In September 2017 Lilium raised more than $90 million from Atomico, Tencent, LGT and Freigeist. A two-seat Eagle prototype had made its maiden flight in April 2017, and the five-seat Phoenix flew in May 2019. In March 2020 more than $240 million followed.
Lilium merged with the SPAC Qell and listed on Nasdaq on 15 September 2021 at about $2.4 billion. Its 2020 loss was €188 million. Wiegand stepped back as CEO in 2022.
Lilium's operating units filed for insolvency on 24 October 2024 and the shares were delisted on 7 November 2024. A planned rescue by investors did not fund, and a second insolvency followed in February 2025.