This is a story of larger trends in the sector. The commercial drone industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 57% from 2021 to 2028 as a result of the need for better data and analytics that only drones provide. American Robotics has prioritized working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to manufacture devices that can safely and successfully operate under the Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) and FAA guidelines. Anticipation of the FAA’s acceptance of commercial drones beyond visual line of sight has sent the space into overdrive while spurring investment and consolidation. “Airobotics’ Optimus System is a sophisticated automated drone platform designed for high-value use cases in industrial, homeland security and smart city services markets,” said Eric Brock, Chairman and CEO of Ondas. “The proposed acquisition of Airobotics will provide strategic technology, regulatory, and business capabilities to both American Robotics and Ondas Networks, opening new geographies and end markets and further strengthening our ability to deliver complete end-to-end solutions for customers on a global scale. This opportunity demonstrates the leadership role Ondas Networks and American Robotics currently have in defining next-generation, mission-critical industrial data solutions and signals a new growth phase for the commercial drone sector.” Airobotics has raised over $130 million to develop and commercialize its Optimus System, a robust autonomous platform with an active customer pipeline in the United States, Israel, Singapore, and the UAE, as well as the potential to expand into additional international markets. Also: The 5 best surveillance drones Ondas and American Robotics, which sells its Scout System to similar kinds of customers, believe combining engineering resources and regulatory know-how will give them a competitive advantage. As a result of its cooperation with the FAA, American Robotics recently became the first company approved to operate automated drones without humans on-site. At the time, CEO Reese Mozer told me about the significance for the future of drone delivery and other BVLOS applications. American Robotics and Airobotics each participated in the recent FAA-sponsored Aviation Rulemaking Committee on the operation of unmanned aircraft BVLOS (known as the BVLOS ARC).
