Although Drone technology has been around a while in some niche circles, we are now starting to see them enter the mainstream in a big way. No longer are they only used by defence organizations and tech expert consumers. Large scale companies and private individuals are now starting to see the potential drones may possess.
Drones are becoming more accessible by the day, possibly leading them to replace humans in highly dangerous jobs. Also, delivery services may have to start taking a serious look at using drones for their benefit.
Drones could be a cost effective solution for many businesses, cutting out the need for human resources.
Drones will almost certainly improve over the next ten or 20 years as autonomy and collision avoidance technology improves.
The stakes are high, forecasts predict the market for using drones could be worth over £120 billion. The biggest industries in the world are battling in out to see who can utilize drones most effectively. Investment in drone tech will grow massively over the next few years.
The Military are way ahead of the game and have been using drones for many years. Tiny flying drones are now used regularly, reducing the risk of human death in violent and precarious situations. They can be used for spying and data collecting and even as weapons.
The USA has a defence budget of $640 billion which means drone manufacturers have an unbelievable opportunity to develop the technology to unheard of levels.
The combination of artificial intelligence and drone technology could see modern warfare enter into sci-fi movie territory a lot sooner than you would think.
Drones could help the emergency services in the near future. Camera technology has seen an upwards spike in recent years meaning drones have become far more effective at spotting things humans find hard to see.
The Red Cross specifically has been using thermal imaging drones to help find people trapped in places such as mountain sides and forests.
New ambulance drones could expand the the emergency infrastructure. Developing drones to be able to, for example, administer medicine could dramatically improve survival rates of people in more remote areas.
In relation to emergency response, drones could be helpful during times of natural disaster. Drones may be able to access areas cut off by floods, hurricanes and earthquakes. They may be able to locate survivors, assess damage and deliver aid.
The prevention of forest fires is literally a hot topic at the moment. Tech companies believe drones could evaluate and monitor forest temperatures therefore preventing the wide scale blazes we have witnessed in recent years.
Some of the more morally bankrupt sections of society will not be welcoming the rise of drone technology. Illegal loggers could find themselves being caught much more easily as drones monitor the world’s rainforests. The same situation applies to poachers as environments such as animal sanctuaries around the world can be monitored with the use of camera drones.
If used correctly and morally drones could have a hugely positive effect on our planet and our wellbeing.