Trial and error has characterized much of the work so far around optimizing and regulating drone technology. With many of the initial questions and legal concerns around drone use finding resolution, the next frontier of the “internet of things” tool is in improving process for commercial use.

One company developing strategic partnerships to create a platform suited to any industry interested in drone tech is SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd. “When we started seeing the applications for drones in the commercial space, we ultimately realized that we can’t develop end-to-end solutions for every application for drones,” said Michael Perry (pictured), DJI’s director of strategic partnerships.

To continue to expand its offerings from within this limitation, DJI sought out partners with solutions it needed to create a more holistic offering for customers and enable it to expand the potential of drones using its platform.

Perry spoke with Jeff Frick (@JeffFrick), co-host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during the AirWorks event in Denver, Colorado. They discussed the evolution of drone technology and how DJI enables innovations for customers in a range of industries.

Taking off with new drone technology

DJI embarked on its partnership initiative after observing silos impeding commercial drone work. The company connected its end users, developers, dealers and hardware providers to foster knowledge sharing among all of drone tech’s moving parts.

“[Now] everyone’s coming together … to think about how we can push forward the future of enterprise with drones,” Perry said.

With the internet of things space rapidly growing, the next priority for DJI is creating sustainable processes for enterprise users. While scalability currently poses the greatest challenge, Perry is confident DJI’s solutions are up to the task.

“[DJI] FlightHub … allows you to see the live feeds from multiple drones, assign tasks to individual drone pilots, monitor all of the drones in your fleet … and use all of that information to be able to operate drones across an enterprise,” he said.

In addition to concerns around scalable process, DJI is also leveraging its technology to address privacy concerns. “With [DJI] AeroScope, we’ve designed an easy-to-implement accountability mechanism … for airspace regulators,” Perry said. AeroScope detects rogue drones and enables drone pilots to communicate with law enforcement to ensure they’re not flying in a way that’s compromising safety or security.

Looking ahead, Perry is certain that DJI can overcome the challenges and provide the best solution for commercial users. “You can decrease the amount of hazardous work hours and increase the efficiency. You can not only do the inspecting faster, you can do it more frequently and get a bigger data set so that you can take that intelligence and make your business operate a lot more effectively,” he concluded.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the AirWorks 2017 event.

Photo: SiliconANGLE