TRACE Live Networks Acquires UAV Manufacturer Draganfly Innovations

TRACE Live Networks, developer of The TRACEr1 – a visually intelligent camera capable of following its owner almost anywhere and live-streaming captured footage to the Internet – announced today, that it has acquired commercial sUAS (small Unmanned Aerial System) specialists, Draganfly Innovations Inc.

Founded in 1998 and located in Saskatoon, Canada, Draganfly Innovations has grown to be a globally recognized leader in commercial UAV development and production. It is the longest running manufacturer of multi-rotor helicopters in the world and the maker of the first civilian sUAS to be credited with saving a life. Draganfly Innovations’ products are widely used in several commercial fields including law enforcement, search and rescue, agricultural mapping, industrial inspection and aerial photography.

The entire Draganfly Innovations development and engineering team, led by founder and President, Zenon Dragan, will remain in the current Saskatoon headquarters. Post-acquisition, TRACE will look to scale the existing Draganfly Innovations commercial sUAS business and combined engineering teams will collaborate on the further advancement of the TRACE Live Network auto-follow devices and live-streaming platform. They will also initiate development of several commercial applications for TRACE’s visually intelligent SmartCameraTM technology.

Mr. Dragan will continue to lead Draganfly Innovations Inc. and will also join the TRACE executive team.

TRACE Co-founder, Cameron Chell, said of the acquisition, “Draganfly Innovations is undoubtedly one of the most respected organizations in the commercial UAV space and we see huge scope for growth, not only within the company’s existing business, but through integrated applications of Draganfly UAVs with TRACE’s visual intelligence tracking technology. We’re incredibly excited to scale out Draganfly to service a wider market and put the expertise within our teams together to collaborate on some ground breaking and potentially life saving new products.”

Draganfly Innovations Inc. founder and President, Zenon Dragan said, “This acquisition allows us to expand and provide our UAV solutions to larger markets. More organizations will benefit from the industry leading aerial imaging and data that our systems provide. We will continue to develop products that push the boundaries of technology.”