DJI shutting down educational drones and robotics division?

It looks like DJI could be prepping to shutter its STEAM Education division with the company announcing the suspension of sales of several products such as the Tello drone and RoboMaster EP from December 31, 2023.

You can see the screenshot below for the announcement that has been shared by DJI in China, but you should know that this notice has not yet popped up on the North American website despite several products leading to a “not available in your country/region” message. We have reached out to DJI for an official comment on the development and will update this article upon receiving one.

Update: DroneDJ can now confirm that DJI’s education line is being shut down in the US as well.

Though it is better known for its incredible camera drones and innovative imaging solutions, DJI has been invested in robotics education for more than a decade now. The company organized its first robotics university summer camp in China in 2013 and followed it up with the first RoboMaster robotics competition in 2015.

Then, in 2018, DJI announced the launch of the Tello educational drone, collaborating with drone startup Ryze Robotics. In the following years, RoboMaster S1 and EP Core programmable robots hit the shelves. Come 2020, DJI Education had matured enough to become a separate division.

At this time, the company committed an initial investment in the form of donations, cash prizes, subsidies, marketing funds, and sponsorships to drive the first round of educational campaigns in Australia. “As we continue to expand DJI Education, we hope to provide the new and impactful tools and hardware for teachers to excite the next generation of tech innovators,” Jianrong Gao, then head of DJI Education, said.

In 2021, DJI added the RoboMaster Tello Talent drone to its education roster.

Also read: DJI Tello drone helps visually impaired people to play badminton [Video]

The DJI STEAM Education division then turned its attention to artificial intelligence, which led to the development of an AI module designed for classroom instruction at primary and secondary school levels. The company also launched an integrated solution called DJI Education Hub to give teachers easy access to diverse robotics resources. A key attraction of the DJI Education Hub was the Robotics Simulator which would leverage a 3D physics engine to add realism to the simulation environment.

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