Artificial intelligence-enabled drones developing company Skydio secures a contract worth $20.2 million per year with the United States Army. Skydio will now equip the U.S. army with high-end artificial intelligence-powered drones to increase the Army’s battle strength and capabilities.
The deal is a part of the U.S. Army’s Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) program, in which the Army is looking to develop and deploy cost-effective and lightweight drones. Skydio plans to provide the U.S. Army with its Skydio X2D drones as a part of this contract.
The Army’s Short Range Reconnaissance program aims to deliver a rucksack portable, vertical take-off and landing drone that provides the Soldier on the ground the capability to gain situational awareness.
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Col.Joseph Anderson said, “The selection of the U.S. Army’s short-range reconnaissance provider for tranche 1 is a significant milestone for the Army, our strategic partners, and the domestic industrial base. The future for our Soldiers is now.” He further added that their partnerships with industry reflect their willingness to compete as well as their ability to lead and innovate in unmanned systems technology.
According to Skydio, their X2D drone has a dimension of 11.9″ x 5.5″ x 3.6″ when folded, and 26.1″ x 22.4″ x 8.3″ when unfolded, making it extremely portable.
The drones are equipped with front-facing 4K cameras having 16x zoom ability and an infrared camera. The company claims that its drone has a flight time of 35 minutes and can operate 24 hours, regardless of the lighting conditions.
Skydio X2D drones are packed with artificial intelligence-powered tools that enable 360-degree obstacle avoidance. United States-based AI drones manufacturing firm Skydio was founded by Abraham Bachrach, Adam Bry, and Matt Donahoe in 2014. The company specializes in developing drones that recognize and avoid obstacles in real-time using a variety of cameras and unique computer vision technology.
CEO and Co-founder of Skdio, Adam Bry, said, “This is an exciting milestone for Skydio, the Army, and most importantly the men and women who serve our country. For drones under 20 pounds, civilian drone technology has raced ahead of traditional defense systems.”
