DroneDJ

DJI has announced the release of new firmware for its RC Pro handset in tandem with an update to the Mini 3 Pro drone, making the two products compatible as users have been clamoring for over the last few months.

Pursuing an objective that allies in the UK’s Royal Navy are also working toward, the US Army’s Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC) is developing an autonomous drone designed to transport blood transfusion reserves and other critical medical supplies to treat injured troops in combat situations.

The Department of Defense (DoD), which oversees management of US military agencies, has awarded security tech company BlueHalo a $24 million contract to provide its Titan counter-drone systems for quick deployment and effective protection of troops and assets.

Automated drone-in-a-box hardware and service developer Percepto has put the finishing touches on the aerial network that will be used for regular inspection and data analysis of a giant floating solar power farm in Thailand, reputed to be among the world’s largest.

Autel Robotics is readying to release six EVO II V3 drones, the company’s recent FCC filings indicate. Moreover, two new drone controllers are also being prepped for release.

DroneShield has released the latest version of its DroneSentry-C2 Command-and-Control counter-drone software. The company is calling v8.0.0 a “major update” since it contains new sensor integrations as well as performance and security improvements including patches for zero-day vulnerabilities and bug fixes.

Dronedek has found a new partner to make its drone delivery mailbox offering more secure. The Indiana-based company says it is teaming up with facial recognition provider Scylla so that its smart delivery mailbox can be unlocked as easily as a cellphone.

Joby, a leading developer of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, has expanded its partnership with the Department of Defense (DoD) in exploring potential applications of next-generation vehicles across all corps of the US military.

Following the controversy over the use of its products in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, about the last thing leading consumer drone manufacturer DJI could have wanted was one of Moscow’s top military leaders praising the Mavic as “a true symbol of modern warfare.” That, however, is exactly what the Shenzhen-based company got in a recent post on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, raising the question: What’s Mandarin for “oy vey?”

It’s frequently been said war is hell, and now dark mockery is being thrown into its merciless mix. Evidence of that came with a video uploaded by Ukraine drone unit Aerorozvidka illustrating what it calls the “dronephobia” affliction of an apparent Russian target on the ground melting down at the approach of a hostile UAV.

Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), an electric utility that serves more than 12 million people in Florida, says its $1.2 million FPLAir One drone is ready for primetime. The launch of the FPLAir One, the utility adds, is a milestone in itself because no other uncrewed aircraft of its size has ever been used before for commercial purposes outside of an FAA test site.

Update: DJI Avata is available to buy now from DJI’s online store and Amazon.

A popular reseller of DJI products has listed a whole bunch of accessories on its website that it says are compatible with the yet-to-be-released Avata drone and the accompanying FPV Goggles 2.

The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) is seeking to accelerate development of a heavy-lift drone in support of the Royal Navy’s vision to revolutionize its resupplying of ships at sea by using UAVs rather than traditional aircraft like helicopters.

If aerial activity tracks changes in how societies are modifying funeral services, the demand for drone pilots qualified to scatter cremation ashes from on high may soon rise, as developments in the UK seem to suggest.

Scientific Applications & Research Associates (SARA) has sued drone delivery company Zipline in a California court, claiming that Zipline’s new acoustics-based drone detection and avoidance (DAA) system violates a patent covering SARA’s technology.

Remember how Hyundai Motor Group was so impressed by the robot dogs and humanoid bots developed by Boston Dynamics that it decided to acquire a majority stake in the robotics firm in 2020? Well, the two companies are now ready to take their relationship to the next level with the formation of the Boston Dynamics AI Institute.

We finally have an answer to what many people have been asking about the upcoming DJI Avata’s controller compatibility. Have no fear, DJI’s Motion Controller won’t be the only controller Avata will use, but also the standard FPV Controller 2, per an Instagram video.

A Texas man has been charged for allegedly flying a DJI Inspire drone loaded with drugs and other contraband into a Fort Worth prison.

Update: DJI Avata is available to buy now from DJI’s online store and Amazon.

DJI’s FPV Goggles V2 with digital image transmission are now available at 25% off the typical retail price. This price drop has presumably been done in preparation for the rumored release of the DJI Avata CineWhoop-style mini FPV drone.

Gremsy, one of the most popular developers of camera gimbal stabilizers for drones, has announced its latest product, the Aevo heavy-lift carbon gimbal. According to the company, Aevo comes with the highest payload capacity ever (9kg) for industrial applications.

NASA has awarded a small business grant to the University of Cincinnati (UC) to develop better autonomous navigation for drones.

Hawaii may seem like a tropical paradise to many, but its climate and location make it vulnerable to some rapidly growing and destructive invasive pests – a reality officials are now dealing with by deploying drones to battle a species of rhinoceros beetle ravaging the archipelago’s iconic coconut trees.

A trio of hospitals in the UK’s northwest is set to begin receiving blood and other patient lab samples by drones using designated air corridors over Morecambe Bay, with the objective of cutting transport time of using frequently clogged roads surrounding the large estuary.

An Arizona-based startup has invented technology that will allow drones to carry advertising billboards in the sky even in blowing wind.