China

Geopolitical tensions are redefining global markets, with drones emerging as a focal point of strategic competition. Manufacturers in China have begun limiting the export of key drone components to the US and Europe, signaling a significant shift in global supply chains. These changes could have far-reaching implications for the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the drone industry at large.

The United States National Drone Association (USNDA) has thrown its support behind the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), lauding provisions aimed at weakening China’s grip on the US drone market while strengthening domestic manufacturing. Representing a coalition of national security and defense professionals, the USNDA is a non-profit organization advocating for the safe and innovative use of drones in national security, public safety, and other critical sectors.

Tech giant DJI has expanded its agricultural lineup by launching three new drones in the Agras series ⁠— T100, T70, and T70P ⁠— exclusively in China. The flagship T100 is touted as DJI Agriculture’s most efficient drone to date, equipped with groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR) capabilities. Meanwhile, the T70 series balances cost-effectiveness with robust features, lowering the entry barrier for agricultural drone users.

In a note to customers made public through the company’s blog, Skydio CEO Adam Bry announced the need to ration batteries in the wake of Chinese sanctions he says are focused on “eliminating the leading American drone company and deepening the world’s dependence on Chinese drone suppliers.”

China’s state-run Global Times has highlighted its stance on DJI’s lawsuit against the US Department of Defense (DoD) in a recent editorial.

US lawmakers may be trying hard to block Americans from using Chinese drone tech, but the Chinese government is busy paving the way for its drone companies to further dominate international markets. China’s Ministry of Commerce has announced a relaxation of export curbs on some of its most advanced consumer drones, effective Sept. 1.

A 33-year-old man in central China’s Hubei province turned to technology to uncover his wife’s infidelity, capturing the attention of social media. Known only by his surname, Jing, the tormented husband used a drone to confirm his suspicions after noticing his wife’s increasingly distant behavior over the past year.

US lawmakers are calling upon the Commerce Department to include Chinese drones in the evolving regulations for connected vehicles. Members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, in particular, have outlined concerns regarding the espionage capabilities of Chinese-made drones including DJI.

This week Yifei and Seth discussing DJI’s possible loophole for getting around the possible ban, another drone is shot down, and more news from the week.

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China’s top anti-espionage agency has issued a stern warning to drone users to ensure that their activities do not result in the leakage of state secrets. This warning from the Ministry of State Security (MSS), a part of a broader initiative by the Chinese government to bolster its counter-espionage efforts, comes at a time when the US is deciding its stance on China-manufactured DJI drones.

As US-China relations deteriorate with both nations engaging in a complex geopolitical rivalry, fears over espionage and technology misuse are also becoming rampant. Chinese drone maker DJI is already facing a potential ban in the US amid national security concerns. And later this month, a Chinese student at the University of Minnesota is scheduled to appear in court for allegedly using a drone to capture sensitive photos of US military installations.

China continues its cutting-edge development of drone and robotic technologies with the creation of what researchers say is the first UAV capable of separating into several individual aerial craft that can continue operating with a high degree of efficiency.

Air taxi developer AutoFlight is revving up to give fellow electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) plane maker EHang a run for its money in their domestic Chinese market, staging what it called the first inter-city flight ever by a next generation aircraft.

China’s top air taxi developer, EHang, not only beat its international rivals to become the world’s first startup to secure certification of its electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle (eVTOL), but it went a step further this month in becoming one of the very few manufacturers in the sector to reveal the list price of its craft – and an exceptionally low one, at that.

EHang continues to advance toward the introduction of air taxi services following the reception of the “Type Certificate” of its EH216-S electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) craft from China’s regulators, and most recently inaugurated its Urban Air Mobility (UAM) Operation Demonstration Center in Shenzhen’s Bao’an district. Yet despite – or perhaps because of – its continued progress, the startup’s US detractors appear bent on complicating its launch of passenger activity with repeated attacks.

Efforts to undermine the fortunes of the world’s leading drone maker DJI are about to bare a bumper crop fruit with legislative passage of a key defense bill that contains the National Security Drone Act of 2023, which blacklists aerial tech from China-based companies for use in official federal agency work. The wider package now awaits President Joe Biden’s signature.

US politicians responding to soured relationships and strong distrust of China have again tabled legislation seeking to prohibit use of technology produced by companies from the nation, with popular and widely deployed DJI drones clearly the primary focus of those efforts.

Here’s a fun little item that’ll lift enduringly grounded spirits around Gatwick and Dublin airports with a boost of schadenfreude. According to media reports, a UAV sighting caused flights to be halted for over hour in and out of the Chinese city of Shenzhen – headquarters and home of global drone giant DJI.

China-based air taxi developer EHang has received crucial government certification to initiate commercial services with actual passengers in the country. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has issued a “Type Certificate” to EHang’s EH216-S aircraft, making it the world’s first fully certified electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi.

Producers of specialized drones or craft with effective tech adaptable to defense purposes may be in for a boost in activity under the Pentagon’s new “Replicator” initiative, which seeks to supplement the traditionally huge, multi-year US defense programs by creating an array of fast, responsive “attritable autonomous systems” – with an anticipated emphasis on quickly manufactured UAVs.

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%.