Ishveena Singh

Skydio, the US drone maker considered by many to be the only real competition to China’s DJI, has announced it will no longer manufacture recreational or hobby drones. Skydio cofounder and CEO Adam Bry says the company has taken the “very difficult decision” to exit the consumer business “in order to put everything we’ve got into serving our enterprise and public sector customers.”

AirHub, a Netherlands-based drone software maker, has announced an exciting new addition to its drone management platform. Called Live Operations, AirHub’s latest offering supercharges live video streams from DJI drones and DJI Dock with features such as AI-based object detection, live telemetry data, and sharable video links.

The recent firmware updates for the DJI Agras T40 and T20P drones pack in several noteworthy optimizations that help to improve the overall drone efficiency and reduce operation times. Here’s what to expect when you update the T40 or T20P drones to their latest firmware version…

Drone logistics specialist A2Z Drone Delivery has launched the second generation of its off-the-shelf RDST Longtail cargo aircraft. The upgraded drone has a more streamlined design and boasts a new propulsion system. But the most exciting upgrade comes in the form of a new rainproof delivery winch that allows the drone to fly for longer-range missions even in inclement weather.

Surf Life Saving NSW, a water safety and emergency rescue organization in Australia, is trialing new drone technology to look for missing bushwalkers or people swept into rough seas.

Birdstop, a California-based company that operates a drone network across the US akin to a constellation of satellites on the ground, has scooped up $2.3 million in new funding. The startup says it will use the funds to buy more drones that can inspect critical infrastructure and grow its AI capabilities.

An Orlando-based company planning to support emergency medical services in Florida with advanced drone delivery operations says it has reached a major new milestone by successfully getting its small UAS parachute recovery systems certified according to ASTM International standards.

ModalAI, a Blue UAS framework manufacturer of autonomous drone technology, has launched the Starling, the company’s smallest, smartest, and safest development drone to date. With the VOXL 2 drone autopilot supercharging its core, the Starling packs in powerful computing and artificial intelligence.

European drone group Parrot has made some major announcements while reporting its first-half earnings. As the company strives to reduce its cash consumption amid tepid drone sales, Parrot says it will stop production and component sourcing in China, and reduce its workforce by around 20%.

Leading public safety drone consulting group Skyfire Consulting is joining forces with Ondas Holdings to bring advanced autonomous drone solutions and services to public safety and Drone First Responder (DFR) markets in the United States.

Amazon’s own drones may not be delivering much – or often ­­– but smart mailboxes that can accept drone deliveries are now a part of the Amazon Sidewalk community network.

DJI has released an exciting new firmware update for its original FPV drone. The first-person view aircraft is now compatible with the latest-generation Goggles Integra as well as Goggles 2, which were first released alongside the DJI Avata drone.

The unparalleled flexibility that comes with drones being able to carry a multitude of sensors, high-resolution cameras, and survey-grade mapping payloads has seen them being used for monitoring sensitive ecological areas and endangered species in several parts of the world. But a rather interesting case is now emerging from Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) where the conservation organization has teamed up with Wildlife Drones to deploy a drone specially equipped with an advanced radio-telemetry system to track and monitor vulnerable wildlife species.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) says it has delivered nine drones to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine to collect evidence of possible war crimes. As an independent agency of the US federal government, USAID has been pursuing accountability for war crimes and human rights abuse in Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country.

The United States Air Force (USAF) has renewed its partnership with the Drone Racing League (DRL) for the seventh year. Not only has the USAF now become the longest-reigning DRL partner, but for the first time, the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces will have an endorsement with a DRL pilot who will fly as the official USAF Team Pilot.

Vertiport operations and Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) solutions provider Kookiejar says it is joining forces with design company STILFOLD to make drone landing platforms using “industrial origami” manufacturing technology.

One of the key features that make the DJI Air 3 drone a serious upgrade over its predecessor is the all-new DJI RC 2 remote controller that comes with a built-in screen.

All eyes are going to be on DJI tomorrow as the company hosts the highly anticipated “Double Up” event, but another new product from the tech giant has now made it to the FCC database. Test reports of an Osmo Action 4 camera have popped up in regulatory filings, indicating DJI could be prepping for another launch event soon.

New firmware is now available to download for DJI Enterprise flagship drone platforms. Both the Matrice 300 (M300) RTK and Matrice 350 (M350) RTK commercial drones have received firmware upgrades today.

Originally designed as a rogue drone interceptor, the Robotican Goshawk observation aircraft is gearing up for a fresh inning with police, ambulance, and fire services in Israel. A modified version of the drone will soon be seen as a first responder, assessing situations with its camera before the arrival of ground teams.

FPV drone specialist BETAFPV says a fresh stock for Pavo Pico, the company’s smallest 2S whoop quadcopter, could arrive as soon as the end of this month. The ultra-light Cinewhoop has been lapped up by users because it weighs under 100 grams and yet can carry the DJI O3 Air Unit.