2018 : The next stage for the drone industry

Drone industry had a solid run in 2017. This once niche technology has progressively gone mainstream and the subsequently flourishing software and application solution ecosystem has followed the growth trajectory. 

The commercial sector has provided a lot of tailwinds for drones. The Agricultural market for the product is predicted to reach over US$420M by 2028 according to a IDTechEx report. Startups focused on end-to-end solutions for enterprise data analytics are particularly hot, like PrecisionHawk who just snatched a $75M in Series D. 

As aerial surveying and data analytics became more accessible to even the smallest farm operators, and with the advancement in drone hardware, there is no doubt that drones would play an increasingly important role in modern farming. 

With the proliferation of drones, air traffic control becomes increasingly important as drones navigate around buildings, planes, birds and more. While drone manufacturers like DJI have opted to develop its own set of obstacle avoiding algorithms, made possible through multiple onboard sensors, other R&D efforts are underway at universities and research laboratories. A research team at the University of Zurich and the National Centre of Competence in Research Robotics in Switzerland has developed a system named DroNet that allows drones to navigate autonomously around unstructured streets and handle unforeseen obstacles such as vehicles and pedestrians.

On the consumer side, DJI still dominates the drone market and rightly so. The pace and quality of their innovation is truly staggering and they have left other challengers in the dust. Yuneec (another Chinese brand) could boast to be their closer competitor but with a mere 7% of the market, their market penetration and brand recognition pales. Other mainstream companies with stronger brands (GoPro) have tried and failed to gain traction, the latter recently announcing it was withdrawing from the market after a disastrous attempt at entry.

Last week saw the launch of the Mavic Air, the most compact 4K drone ever. The Mavic air is super light weighing a mere 430g and able to achieve a 21 minute flight time with a top speed of up to 68/kmh. It is positioned between the Mavic Pro and Spark, packing an impressive Advanced Piloting Assistance System (APAS) for object avoidance, improved hand gesture controls, 8GB built-in memory on board and improved stabilisation for videography. Retail price started at $799 with higher prices for extra accessory combinations.

Brian Trappe is Managing Director of Axiom Technology Headhunting in Hong Kong.