Commercial UAV Expo’s Pitch the Press: The 3 Drone Companies that Stood Out from the Crowd

At Commercial UAV Expo in Las Vegas yesterday, a panel of journalists – including yours truly – had the opportunity to hear 15 drone companies pitch their product in only 2 minutes.  Two minutes means that presenters have to get to the heart of their value proposition – fast.  Every company had a great offering, displaying a variety of products: from hardware and sensors to software and processing.  These three new companies were standouts, however – and they are profiled below in this Commercial UAV Expo press release.

These products and solutions were selected by a group of high-profile industry editors and reporters 

Las Vegas, NV, October 29, 2019 – Three companies were selected today as the winners of Pitch the Press at Commercial UAV Americas 2019: A2Z, Agrowing, and SolSpec. Their latest products, which were pitched to a panel of high-profile press representatives at the show, were deemed the most innovative and promising technology amongst a competitive group of 15 presenters.

Agrowing showcased their AI-enabled, 12 narrow band multispectral sensor with 12 megapixels per band. This product stuck out to the panel for its precision and for being a leader in the number of spectral bands it offers. The ability to examine assets in as many spectral bands as possible provides its users with more actionable, specific visual data. The capabilities of this product set it apart from the competition and will create real opportunities for the right users.

The package delivery solution from A2Z lowers packages in a controlled manner via a tether. This enables the drone to stay in flight without having to go through landing and takeoff maneuvers. The panel found this to be a unique and novel solution that attempts to address several issues in the package delivery industry such as noise and privacy. It represents a different approach to a common issue that the panel believes will resonate for any organization working through delivery logistics.

SolSpec presented its new drone analytics software platform. The panel selected this solution for its ability to take data and generate a useable, actionable report. Many solutions out there are gathering the data but provide little to no support with analyzing that data to provide actionable solutions. This solution was unique in that it packages that data into actionable items so that users can focus on what needs to get done. By not simply giving users a “data dump” they’ll be able to take a proactive approach that enables stakeholders to address issues before they become problems.

“Pitch the Press” is a unique opportunity for exhibitors to present their products to a group of editors and reporters looking for the most unique new technology being showcased at Commercial UAV Expo. Fifteen exhibitors were selected from an applicant pool of over 40 companies to share their new product or service during the one-hour event. Each exhibitor gave a two-minute elevator pitch to members of the media, followed by a one-minute Q&A.

“Two minutes is not a lot of time, but it’s enough to get a sense of what’s new and what’s possible,” said Jeremiah Karpowicz, Executive Editor at Diversified Communications. “Our esteemed panel of journalists selected the products and solutions that stuck out to them the most, but ‘Pitch the Press’ is ultimately about giving everyone a sense of what products can be further explored on the Commercial UAV Expo exhibit floor, which contains more than 200 exhibitors from around the world. Understanding the opportunities that companies like A2Z, Agrowing, and SolSpec are creating is just the beginning of where and how they’re going to make a difference in many different industries, and that’s exciting from both a technology and a storytelling perspective.”

The “Pitch the Press” panel included Miriam McNabb from DroneLife, Jeff Salmon from xyHt, Abe Peck from Inside Unmanned Systems, Stuart Walker from LiDAR Magazine and Danielle Gagnefrom Commercial UAV News.