Drone Technology for Good?
To set the scene with what Responsible Research and Innovation is, we are going to show you an example of where one technology can be used in quite different ways.
The Positives of Drone Technology
- Better Production
- Less Waste
- Enabler of Food Autonomy
- Less Labour Intensive
- Cheaper Food
The Negatives of Drone Technology
- Do drones replace people?
- What new risks might dependence on drones pose?
- Cyber security, technology export controls?
- Expensive & fragile technology - Can it be relied upon?
- New business models required, Who owns and controls the technology?
Could this technology be used for nefarious purposes?
Please be aware, this video contains shocking but fictitious scenes and as such may not be suitable for all viewers. No students were harmed in the making of this video.
Consider that both of these scenarios apply similar innovations...
- Lightweight Electric Motors
- Advanced Materials
- Autonomous Control Systems
- High Energy Density Battery Technologies
- Lightweight Manufacturing Techniques
- Consumer Grade Technologies Repurposed for Traditionally Professional Applications
- Computer Vision
- Machine Learning
- New Business Models
... but are used for very different purposes.
But this is all Science Fiction isn't it?
Not necessarily, recently a company named Skydio released a consumer drone with tracking capabilities that retailed for $999, here’s a video of it in action.
Recently Skydio received $100,000,000 in funding, the CEO Adam Bry released the following statement.
We are now bringing the power of autonomy to enterprises, government agencies, first responders, and defense customers.
The company then announced the following in 2020.
But what's the Achilles Heel you ask?
