Ishveena Singh is a versatile journalist and writer with a passion for drones and location technologies. She has been named as one of the 50 Rising Stars of the geospatial industry for the year 2021 by Geospatial World magazine.
How fast can a drone respond to a 911 call? In some departments, the answer is under 60 seconds, and the software making that possible just passed 10 million processed calls.
Here’s something DJI buyers don’t want to hear: your drone price might not have been negotiable. An Australian agricultural drone distributor has admitted it illegally tried to stop resellers from discounting DJI products, triggering action from the country’s competition regulator.
The United States Army is doubling down on a new way to stop hostile drones, not just with missiles or jammers, but with AI-powered nets in the sky. Utah-based Fortem Technologies says it has secured a three-year, $18 million contract to deploy its DroneHunter interceptors and support services at Army sites worldwide. The deal is aimed at strengthening defenses against what military leaders increasingly see as one of the most urgent battlefield (and homeland) threats: small, unauthorized drones.
After filing its appeal in federal court, drone maker DJI is now laying out why it believes the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to blacklist the company is unlawful, harmful, and unsupported by evidence. In comments shared with DroneDJ, a DJI spokesperson said the company is “challenging the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to prohibit DJI from marketing, selling, and importing new products into the United States.”
If you still think fireworks are just about loud booms after dark, think again. Last weekend, at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, more than 1,000 drones rewrote the playbook for daytime pyrotechnics and set a Guinness World Record for the Largest Daytime Fireworks Display. The milestone moment happened during the International Fireworks Championship, but the real star of the show wasn’t a traditional mortar shell. It was a fleet of 1,020 pyro drones.
The world’s largest drone manufacturer is once again taking the US government to court, marking a definitive escalation in a long-running saga of national security, trade protectionism, and technological dominance. DJI has formally filed an appeal with the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The petition targets a December 23, 2025, decision by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to place the company on its “covered list” — a move that effectively bans the authorization and sale of all new DJI drone models in the United States.
Vector, a self-described “modern warfare-as-a-service” provider, says its Longbow drone platform has officially cleared two of the US government’s most important vetting programs for military-grade unmanned systems.
If you already own a DJI Osmo Mobile gimbal, you might be sitting on one of its most underrated features. With the DJI Mimo app, your Apple Watch can act as a live view monitor and remote controller, letting you start recording, adjust framing, and even activate subject tracking without touching your phone. For solo creators, travelers, or anyone tired of running back to hit record, this setup feels surprisingly liberating. Here’s how to use it properly, and what to expect…
The US Department of Defense has quietly kicked off a six-month, $100 million competition that sounds like science fiction: build autonomous drone swarms that can take spoken commands and turn them into coordinated battlefield action.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has slapped a major lawsuit on Anzu Robotics — the very company that just announced its flagship Raptor drone has been discontinued because of component shortages. What looked like a supply-chain stumble has now blown up into a full-blown national security story.
When Versaterm acquired DroneSense in July 2025, the message was clear: drones were no longer a side project for public safety agencies; they were becoming part of the core dispatch workflow. Now, Canada-based Versaterm is taking that strategy a step further. The company has announced it is acquiring Aloft, one of the most important names in airspace intelligence and FAA drone authorization. The move effectively fills in the missing piece of Versaterm’s drone puzzle: regulatory approval and controlled airspace compliance.
DJI has rolled out a fresh firmware update for its 360-degree camera, the Osmo 360, promising real-world improvements for creators who demand vivid footage with minimal fuss. The update —firmware v01.03.08.70 paired with the DJI Mimo app v2.7.2 for both iOS and Android — brings a suite of enhancements to panoramic video capture and color performance.
There’s a reason most people don’t own drones. It’s not just the price. It’s the fear. The setup. The controller. The learning curve. The “what if I crash this into my neighbor’s window?” anxiety. That’s exactly why DJI built the Flip, and why this surprise discount deal feels bigger than it looks.
In a major vote on Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners in Los Angeles unanimously approved a private donation that could send as much as $4 million to US drone maker Skydio.
When Europe’s drone rules changed in recent years, manufacturers had to rethink not just hardware, but compliance. Under the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) framework, drones are assigned C-class labels (C0 through C6), each tied to specific operational privileges and limits in the Open and Specific categories. Now, Swiss drone manufacturer Wingtra says its latest mapping platform, WingtraRAY, has secured both C3 and C6 certification, potentially expanding how surveyors operate across Europe.
DJI, the company behind the bulk of civilian drones flying across American skies, is facing renewed scrutiny after Chinese authorities criminally detained a former senior executive on suspicion of accepting bribes.
Anzu Robotics, a Texas-based drone manufacturer that launched its Raptor series as an alternative to DJI in 2024, has announced that the line is no longer available for purchase due to persistent component shortages that have stalled further production. In an official notice from CEO Randall Warnas, the company said it had pursued multiple supply solutions without success and will instead shift focus to a “next generation” product designed to meet new commercial and regulatory demands.
A DJI drone for $149 sounds like a typo. The tech giant has built its reputation on premium camera drones that rarely dip into impulse-buy territory. So when the DJI Neo, a stabilized 4K camera drone, suddenly drops to $149, it’s worth paying attention.
A UK drone pilot who flew a DJI Mavic 3 Pro Cine over an active industrial fire, inside restricted airport airspace, and nearly 1,900 feet into the sky has been fined the equivalent of over $3,600 in what authorities believe may be the first conviction of its kind.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is making one thing clear in 2026: if you fly a drone recklessly, expect consequences. The FAA fined multiple drone operators and suspended or revoked several remote pilot licenses in recent months over unsafe and unauthorized flights. The violations ranged from flying near emergency response aircraft during wildfires to operating over packed NFL games and major music festivals. And the penalties aren’t small.
If you’ve been tracking DJI’s latest gear and the ongoing turbulence in the US drone market, this may feel like a rare moment worth noticing. The DJI Mini 5 Pro, one of the most capable compact drones ever released, is currently available on Amazon starting at $759 with Prime shipping. But the real eye-popping deal is the Fly More Combo with the DJI RC 2 controller, now at $1,099, down significantly from its typical $1,599 list price on other retailers. That’s a $500-plus in savings, and it comes with the accessories that unlock the Mini 5 Pro’s full potential.
DJI recently rolled out a firmware update that fundamentally upgrades what the Osmo 360 camera can do. At the same time, the Osmo 360 Camera Adventure Combo has dropped from $700 to $511, with delivery arriving before Valentine’s Day. That’s a nearly $190 price cut on a camera that just became dramatically more creator-friendly.
With the 2026 FIFA World Cup set to bring more than one million international visitors to stadiums across the United States, federal security planners are moving early to counter one of the fastest-growing threats in modern event protection: small drones.