Drone Products

As demand accelerates, drone companies are scaling by building flexible engineering teams instead of trying to do everything in-house. The drone industry – in the US and around the world – is entering a new phase. Government policy, national security priorities, and rising commercial demand are pushing manufacturers to move from prototype to production faster… Read more: U.S. Drone Manufacturing’s New Advantage Isn’t Just Factories. It’s Agility.

New motor and controller design aims to simplify drone production while improving payload capacity and system reliability ePropelled has introduced a new integrated propulsion system designed to simplify UAV manufacturing and improve aircraft performance. The company unveiled its SKYLARK™ Series at the Farnborough International Airshow 2026, where it positioned the product as a solution for… Read more: ePropelled Targets Faster Drone Manufacturing with Integrated SKYLARK Propulsion

UC Berkeley research presented in Korea finds that dynamic fares could strengthen the business case for airport air taxi service Can Urban Air Mobility (UAM) work? Research presented at Korea Drone and UAM Expo suggests dynamic pricing could make airport air taxis economically viable. While much of the urban air mobility (UAM) conversation has focused… Read more: Uber-Style Pricing Could Be the Missing Piece for Profitable Air Taxis, Researchers Say

Montreal photogrammetry developer overhauls tie point extraction, bundle adjustment and multi-camera workflows in the latest Correlator3D release. SimActive has released Correlator3D Version 11.1, a photogrammetry update centered on a rebuilt aerial triangulation engine. The company says the release improves tie point extraction, accelerates bundle adjustment and adds tools to validate image connectivity for more accurate… Read more: Aerial Triangulation Gets Major Overhaul in SimActive’s Correlator3D Version 11.1

In this guest post, Micantis co-founder and CEO Howard Alt argues that batteries, not aircraft, may be the defining factor in the future of the U.S. drone industry. As demand for drones grows across commercial, public safety, and defense applications, he contends that battery manufacturing and supply chain resilience have become strategic issues for both… Read more: Guest Post: America’s Drone Future Depends on Battery Independence

New software stack combines AI, thermal imaging, and computational imaging to improve ground-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance Teledyne FLIR OEM has introduced Prism™ Ground ISR, a new AI-powered software stack designed to improve ground-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions. The new release extends the company’s Prism software family beyond counter-drone applications and brings advanced… Read more: Teledyne FLIR OEM Expands Prism AI Platform with Ground ISR Software for Military Target Classification

New research facility signals shift from policy development to operational readiness The Federal Aviation Administration is taking another step toward integrating advanced air mobility (AAM) into the National Airspace System (NAS), breaking ground this week on a dedicated research facility designed to study how the next generation of vertical flight aircraft will safely operate alongside… Read more: FAA Moves from Planning to Building for Advanced Air Mobility

New thermal imaging module combines SXGA resolution with compact size and U.S. manufacturing Teledyne FLIR OEM has announced the Boson SX8, a new longwave infrared (LWIR) thermal camera module designed for defense, industrial, and uncrewed systems applications. According to the company, the Boson SX8 is the first NDAA-compliant, volume-production uncooled thermal camera module to combine… Read more: New Boson SX8 Brings High-Resolution Thermal Imaging to NDAA-Compliant Drone Payloads

New U.S.-Made quadrotor targets defense, public safety, and commercial operations with modular design and lower cost Applied Aeronautics has introduced SkyBeam, a new heavy lift quadrotor platform designed for defense, public safety, and commercial operations. The company says the aircraft focuses on endurance, payload flexibility, and rapid deployment for demanding field missions. The Chicago-based company… Read more: Applied Aeronautics Launches SkyBeam Heavy Lift Drone Platform

New approach reduces maintenance costs and improves planning, engagement, and public services The London Borough of Harrow has launched an expanded digital twin of the city, using drone data to improve maintenance, planning, and public engagement. The project combines high-resolution drone imagery with existing lower-resolution data to create a more detailed and cost-effective digital model… Read more: A Smarter City Model: Harrow’s Digital Twin Delivers Real-World Results

Compact MSX-Enabled System Targets Rapid OEM Integration Across Embedded and Industrial Applications Teledyne FLIR OEM has introduced the Lepton® XDS, a compact dual thermal and visible camera module, at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The new module brings the company’s patented MSX® imaging technology into a small, OEM-ready format. The company says the product is… Read more: Teledyne FLIR OEM Launches Lepton XDS Dual Thermal-Visible Camera Module

KULR Technology Group and Hylio have entered a joint collaboration to produce NDAA-compliant battery systems for agricultural drones built in Texas. The partnership centers on U.S.-based design and manufacturing to strengthen secure domestic supply chains for drone energy systems. The companies plan to design, prototype, and qualify high-performance batteries for Hylio’s unmanned aerial systems. Engineering… Read more: New Partnership Building Farming Drone Batteries in Texas

Sentrycs, an Ondas Inc. subsidiary specializing in counter-drone technology, has delivered its C-UAS solution to a German State Police department. The deployment arrives as Sentrycs prepares to launch its new portable system, Sentrycs Scout, at the Enforce Tac exhibition in Germany. The system uses a proprietary “Cyber over RF” technique, also known as Protocol Manipulation,… Read more: Sentrycs Scout Expands Counter-Drone Capabilities for Law Enforcement

Promo Drone has partnered with Almo Pro AV to expand use of the Starling X.2 drone-mounted digital sign. The companies plan joint demos, training, and outreach to Pro AV and public safety customers. Starling X.2 drone-mounted digital sign The Starling X.2 is a drone platform that carries an ultra-bright LED sign for digital messaging and… Read more: Promo Drone Announces New Distribution For Signage Drone

Intrepid Potash-Wendover, Aquatech International, and Adionics have advanced their Wendover Lithium Project in Utah, reporting high lithium recovery and battery-grade product quality from potash brine waste streams. The project is positioned as a domestic source of critical minerals that could support electrification and downstream industries, including batteries for uncrewed systems and other defense and aerospace… Read more: New Lithium Project Advances in Utah, Supporting Domestic Supply Chains

Amprius Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: AMPX) has announced the expansion of the Amprius Korea Battery Alliance following a successful launch event in Daejeon, South Korea. The battery manufacturer, which specializes in next-generation lithium-ion batteries built on its Silicon Anode Platform, added three contract manufacturers to the consortium, significantly increasing its global production capacity and strengthening NDAA-compliant… Read more: Amprius Expands Korea Battery Alliance with NDAA-Compliant Manufacturing Network

A New Moment for BVLOS Operations Drone operators in the U.S. now have more access to Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) waivers than ever before. These waivers allow a single operator to fly longer routes without placing observers along the entire path. The FAA’s recent publication of the BVLOS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)… Read more: Blue Marble Shows How AI and LiDAR Deliver ROI for Rail Operators

How scalable workflows, automation, and distributed processing make managing large photogrammetry projects possible. DRONELIFE spoke with Philippe Simard, co-founder and CEO of SimActive, the Canadian company behind the Correlator3D photogrammetry suite, to explore one of the most pressing challenges in the aerial mapping industry: how to efficiently manage and process massive datasets from large-scale projects,… Read more: Managing Large Photogrammetry Projects Simultaneously: Can It Be Done?

New update delivers user-driven interface improvements, expanded visualization tools, and enhanced file format support. Blue Marble Geographics has announced the release of Global Mapper® v26.2, the latest version of its all-in-one GIS software. The update was introduced this week at Intergeo 2025, the international mapping conference taking place in Frankfurt, Germany this week. The new… Read more: Blue Marble Geographics Unveils Global Mapper® v26.2 at Intergeo 2025

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