From JetSmarter to AeroVentures: Sergey Petrossov's Push to Bring Data Transparency to Aircraft Ownership

When Sergey Petrossov founded JetSmarter in 2012, he reshaped private-jet travel through an AI-powered mobile marketplace. The platform turned fragmented charter operations into streamlined digital transactions. What once required days of phone calls and broker negotiations could suddenly be completed in minutes.

The company's rise attracted global attention, leading to its acquisition by Vista Global. Following the acquisition, Petrossov took on dual leadership roles at Vista Global: he served as President of XO (the combined JetSmarter and XOJET platform) and as Chief Growth & Digital Officer for Vista Global.

Now, he is applying that same AI-driven marketplace logic toward one of aviation's last analog frontiers: aircraft ownership. His latest venture, AeroVentures Marketplace, uses AI-powered technology to streamline buying, selling, and financing aircraft generally valued at $10 million and above, a segment long known for its opacity and inefficiency.

"On the ownership side, I see the same fragmentation and information gaps we once saw in charter," Petrossov told Sherpa Report. "AeroVentures was built to solve those—bringing speed, data, advisory, and capital into one ecosystem."

From Charter to Ownership

Petrossov's career has followed a consistent theme: identifying inefficiencies in high-value aviation transactions and fixing them through AI-driven technology. At JetSmarter, he digitized a market that operated largely through word of mouth. At Vista, he learned the complexities of scaling that AI-powered system globally, managing pricing algorithms, and balancing technology with human expertise.

Those experiences laid the groundwork for AeroVentures. The company aims to modernize ownership by helping corporate flight departments, family offices, and ultra-high-net-worth individuals make data-informed decisions faster and with greater transparency.

"Clients don't necessarily want to call their broker every time they're curious about a Challenger 350 or want to run the numbers on different ownership models," Petrossov told Corporate Jet Investor. "But when they can explore on their own and simulate real scenarios, it sparks ideas and builds familiarity."

Today's aircraft buyers want instant valuations, predictive resale models, and verified off-market access. Traditional brokers can take weeks to deliver that information. AeroVentures compresses those timelines into hours through an AI-powered platform that aggregates real-time market data.

How the Platform Works

AeroVentures combines three service lines that usually exist as separate businesses: aircraft sales advisory, asset financing, and data analytics. Together, they form a single digital ecosystem that supports every stage of ownership.

Advisory Services provide negotiation support, market analysis, and access to discreet off-market aircraft. Financing Solutions offers tailored lending options with 48-hour response times, addressing a pain point that frequently stalls high-value transactions. The Owner Marketplace functions as the AI-powered core, delivering instant aircraft valuations, market performance comparisons, and AI-driven predictive resale modeling.

Rather than trying to remove human expertise from the process, the AI-powered Marketplace serves as an entry point for engagement, letting clients explore different ownership scenarios, just as successful real estate platforms like Zillow have done to drive massive consumer interaction. Clients can test various acquisition options before engaging advisors for detailed consultation.

The platform processes data from comparable sales, maintenance records, utilization rates, and macroeconomic indicators. It generates valuation recommendations in real time.

Curated Transactions, Not Open Listings

Unlike public listing sites, AeroVentures uses a curated matching model. Buyers and sellers are qualified before engagement, preserving confidentiality and transaction quality. The AI-driven system identifies potential matches based on aircraft type, budget, and timing requirements, then connects both sides through human advisors who handle negotiation and due diligence.

This hybrid approach reflects lessons Petrossov learned building JetSmarter's membership-based network, where a vetted community improved efficiency and user trust.

AeroVentures' technology handles qualification and preliminary matching, allowing the company to scale faster while maintaining service standards typically reserved for boutique brokerages. The result is a platform designed to balance automation with the personal attention high-value clients expect.

"We are not trying to replace the human side of aviation," Petrossov told Sherpa Report. "We are elevating it."

Industry Context: Disruption Through Data

The private-aviation brokerage model has remained largely unchanged for decades. Deals often still rely heavily on personal networks and private spreadsheets, creating information asymmetry that favors intermediaries. Buyers may wait weeks for valuations, and sellers can rely on opaque benchmarks.

AeroVentures wants to replace that opacity with data transparency. The platform aggregates aircraft data globally and continuously refines valuations through machine learning-based algorithms. AI-driven predictive modeling estimates future asset values based on historical depreciation patterns, flight hours, and maintenance trends.

Industry analysts view this as part of a larger trend toward digital price discovery in asset-heavy sectors, from real estate to yachts. This transparency benefits buyers, but it also benefits sellers by stabilizing valuation benchmarks and expanding the overall market through reduced information barriers.

Asset financing integration provides another competitive edge. AeroVentures digitizes credit assessment and maintains relationships with pre-approved lenders, offering capital faster than traditional aviation banks, where approval can take weeks.

A Continuum of Innovation

Petrossov's path from JetSmarter to AeroVentures is a natural evolution within the same ecosystem. JetSmarter disrupted access to private flight through AI-powered booking tools; AeroVentures now applies AI-driven technology to knowledge distribution about that market for prospective buyers.

The consistency of his approach—identifying friction, deploying AI-powered solutions, and scaling globally—illustrates how AI-driven marketplace logic can extend from booking seats to buying aircraft.

"By solving for the two biggest pain points, lack of information and slow delivery, we believe Aero Ventures will become the hub where the world's most discerning aviation clients begin and manage every major ownership decision," Petrossov told Sherpa Report.