Inspection

Commercial UAV Expo panelists point to data analysis, scale and human oversight as the near-term value of artificial intelligence. As commercial drone programs scale, artificial intelligence may be solving a problem that drones themselves helped create: too much data for people to reasonably review. That was one of the key takeaways from a session at… Read more: When Drones Generate 6,000 Images, Who Looks at Them? AI’s Real Role in Commercial Drone Operations

Bristol-based drone company adds Innovate UK backing and a fresh check from Investing for Purpose alongside follow-on from Loggerhead Ventures and One Planet Capital. Perceptual Robotics has secured more than £4 million (about $5.3 million) so far in 2026. The Bristol-based company will use the capital to expand its wind turbine inspection platform. It announced… Read more: Perceptual Robotics Gets £4 Million to Scale Turbine Inspection Drones

Houston-based MFE Offshore becomes an official distributor of Hydromea’s tetherless underwater inspection technology for energy operators. MFE Offshore announced July 9, 2026, that it has partnered with Swiss underwater robotics developer Hydromea to distribute the Hydromea EXRAY underwater inspection ROV across the energy, industrial, hydropower, marine infrastructure and climate science markets. The agreement expands MFE… Read more: MFE Offshore Adds Hydromea EXRAY Underwater Inspection ROV to Portfolio

The companies say the integration gives customers a secure aerial mapping option that combines heavy-lift American-made drones with engineering-grade LiDAR. Huntsville, Ala.-based GeoCue has announced that its TrueView LiDAR payloads are now compatible with drones from Real-Time Robotics Inc., a pairing the companies say expands NDAA-compliant drone LiDAR options for customers in surveying, defense, public… Read more: GeoCue’s TrueView 641 Certified for Real-Time Robotics HERA Drone

ANRA says its Mission Manager X platform now supports more than 1,800 BVLOS commercial drone operations per day across delivery, utilities, and public sector missions. ANRA Technologies has announced that its Mission Manager X (MMX) platform now enables more than 55,000 commercial drone operations each month across the United States, equating to more than 1,800… Read more: ANRA Technologies Surpasses 55,000 Commercial Drone Operations Per Month

Percepto launches next-gen inspection software By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill For energy companies, producing actionable data is almost as important as the production of millions of cubic feet of natural gas or megawatts. Representatives of oil and gas firms and electric utility companies in attendance at this week’s InnovateEnergy Week conference in The Woodlands,… Read more: Beyond the Drone: Percepto’s New Platform Brings AI to Infrastructure Inspections

Utilities face challenges in establishing drone programs By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill While the owners of electric utility assets were some of the earliest adopters of drone technology, they are facing new challenges and opportunities – such as the expected adoption of new beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) regulations and government pressures to… Read more: Utilities Prepare for BVLOS While Navigating the Post-DJI Transition

A new integration streams Blackline Safety’s connected gas data from the Spot quadruped to Blackline Live, layering robotic atmospheric awareness on top of MFE’s existing drone-based gas detection products. MFE Inspection Solutions has launched a robotic gas detection solution that connects Blackline Safety’s cloud-connected portable detector to the Boston Dynamics Spot quadruped. The Houston company says… Read more: MFE Launches Robotic Gas Detection for Boston Dynamics’ Spot

Loggerhead Ventures leads the round with follow-on from One Planet Capital, fueling AI-powered drones for wind farm maintenance. Perceptual Robotics has secured fresh funding to scale its autonomous wind turbine inspection platform. Loggerhead Ventures led the round, with follow-on investment from One Planet Capital. The Thessaloniki-based company announced the deal on May 5, 2026. The… Read more: Perceptual Robotics Raises Funding to Automate Wind Turbine Inspection Drones

Funding will support international growth and further development of AI-driven maintenance solutions Donecle, a France-based company specializing in automated aircraft inspection, has raised €10 million in a new funding round. The round was led by IRDI Capital Investissement and SWEN Capital Partners, with participation from GSO Innovation and ARIS Occitanie. The company plans to use… Read more: Donecle Raises €10 Million to Expand Drone-Based Aircraft Inspection Platform

Limited public details raise questions about “v.USA 1.0” and how international companies can meet U.S. security requirements The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted conditional approval to the Sees.ai v.USA. 1.0 Uncrewed Aircraft System, exempting it from the agency’s Covered List restrictions. The approval, based on a determination by the Department of War (DoW), is… Read more: FCC Grants Conditional Approval to Sees.ai UAS, Signaling New Path for Foreign Drone Systems

By Dronelife Features Editor Jim Magill When an offshore platform experiences a massive blowout resulting in an oil spill covering a vast expanse of ocean waters, recovery teams require accurate data on ocean currents to quickly initiate the cleanup. In past years, it was often difficult and expensive to collect such data, but over the… Read more: Texas A&M Team Uses Drones to Map Ocean Currents

By Dronelife Features Editor Jim Magill A start-up Houston-based drone and software developer is aiming to serve a large looming market demand for drone infrastructure inspections, which could one day grow to involve tens of thousands of UAV flights every day. Horizon Aerobotics, which recently emerged from stealth mode to begin commercial operations, has targeted… Read more: Drone, Software Startup Looks to Capture Growing Inspection Demand

New MFE Offshore unit expands use of uncrewed systems for offshore and maritime operations MFE Inspection Solutions has launched MFE Offshore, a new division dedicated to subsea and offshore inspection operations, with a strong focus on drone and robotic inspection technologies. Announced January 22, 2026, in Houston, Texas, the division is designed to support offshore… Read more: MFE Launches Offshore Division Focused on Subsea and Drone-Based Inspections

Fortem Technologies and Southern States LLC have announced a strategic partnership to deliver integrated airspace awareness and counter-drone solutions designed for electric utility infrastructure protection. Southern States, a century-old provider of high-voltage switching and grid-resiliency technology, has integrated Fortem’s specialized counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) components into its new Airspace Awareness product line. Technical Integration and… Read more: Fortem and Southern States Partner on Grid Defense

Generative AI-run systems point to the future of drone applications By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill Recent advances in the development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and pending new regulations regarding UAV operations are likely to pave the way for widespread industrial adoption of fully autonomous drones, according to a speaker at the Energy Drone/Robotics… Read more: Generative AI + Autonomy: The Next Leap for Industrial Drone Programs

Swiss manufacturer Xer Technologies presented its Xer X8 hybrid-electric unmanned aircraft system at Intergeo 2025 in Frankfurt, demonstrating the platform’s advanced capabilities for large-scale infrastructure monitoring operations. The Xer X8 addresses critical operational limitations of battery-powered drones through innovative hybrid propulsion technology. Xer X8 Technical Specifications and Performance The Xer X8, (available in an NDAA-compliant… Read more: From the Floor of Intergeo 2025: Xer Showcases Their Hybrid-Electric X8 Infrastructure Inspection Drone

This article from Blue Marble Geographics highlights how advanced point cloud analysis can support vegetation fire risk assessment. Blue Marble is known for its geospatial software, including Global Mapper and Global Mapper Pro, which provide powerful tools for working with LiDAR, photogrammetry, and other complex datasets. These solutions enable users across industries—from utilities to forestry—to… Read more: Leveraging Point Clouds for Vegetation Encroachment Assessment: A Drone-Enabled Approach

AI-powered drone system reduces inspection time from 2 hours to 17 minutes, offering a safer, faster solution for subterranean infrastructure projects by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian J. McNabb This article published in collaboration with JUIDA, the Japanese UAS Industrial Development Association. Japanese firm Toda Construction Co. has developed an innovative new application for UAVs- not… Read more: Drones Go Underground: Japan’s Toda Construction Uses UAVs to Inspect Tunnel Faces

Autonomous Drone Solution Enhances Efficiency and Coverage in Rugged Terrain JOUAV, a manufacturer of industrial unmanned aerial systems (UAS), has partnered with the Guangxi Power Supply Bureau to launch China’s first “Fixed + Mobile” UAS autonomous inspection system for power grid operations. This solution sets a new standard in power line inspections by improving efficiency… Read more: JOUAV Introduces Fixed + Mobile UAS Inspection System for Power Grids