In a blog post by Skydio CEO Adam Bry published today, the corporate revealed that it’s going to discontinue its consumer drone line to prioritize its offerings for the enterprise and public sector. This decision comes 4 years after the launch of the Skydio 2, a drone that gained attention for its unique features like follow-and-film capability and autonomous cinematography.
Because the drone industry has evolved, Skydio has found the industrial and public sector market growing quickly, as demand for domestic drone products rises over continued concerns over Chinese-manufactured technology for military and state use. Skydio was one among the initial drones granted Blue sUAS status, and has continued to successfully leverage their designation as a secure platform combined with the benefit of use provided by Skydio’s flagship autonomy platform to achieve market share across large enterprise, public safety, and federal agencies.
Adam Bry acknowledged the difficulties in making the choice to desert the buyer market, recognizing the impact on the prevailing user base. Despite the pivot, Skydio guarantees to take care of software updates, customer support, warranties, and repair services for its consumer customers in keeping with their existing warranty commitments. The corporate also intends to maintain accessories available for the foreseeable future.
As a part of its recent direction, Skydio has introduced the Skydio 2+ Enterprise Kit, geared toward catering to the needs of economic enterprises and public sector organizations. The kit is presented as a tailored solution for sectors with critical applications, reminiscent of public safety and defense.
A notable addition to this announcement is Skydio’s assurance of Distant ID compliance for existing consumer drones. Distant ID will likely be required in just about all drones on September 16, 2023. In line with the corporate’s FAQ document, Skydio enabled Distant ID on drones produced on or before September 16, 2022, using a software update and label.
The move away from consumer drones marks a big shift in Skydio’s trajectory from inception: however it is clearly backed by the numbers. In February of this yr, Skydio announced the successful closure of a considerable $230 million Series E funding round, catapulting its total funding to a formidable $562 million. As well as, Skydio unveiled a state-of-the-art 36,000 square feet manufacturing facility in Hayward, CA in response to escalating product demand. Skydio now claims integration inside every branch of the U.S. Department of Defense, over half of the U.S. State Departments of Transportation, and greater than 200 public safety agencies across 47 states. The brand also has a rising profile in energy utilities and other enterprise sectors.
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