Skydio X10 has been launched by Skydio — this is a drone that has been designed for first responders, infrastructure operators as well as U.S. and allied militaries around the world.
Skydio X10 has the sensors to capture every detail of the data that matters and the AI-powered autonomy to put those sensors wherever they are needed. It packs more capability and versatility in a smaller and easier-to-use package than has previously existed.
This drone is the culmination of everything the company has learned over the past ten years delivering more than 40,000 intelligent flying machines and serving over 1,500 enterprise and government organizations. It’s the first drone that Skydio has designed from the ground up, with full insight into the needs of the most demanding professional users in some of the most high-stakes scenarios
For the first time, world-class hardware – sensors, modularity, connectivity – is coming together with the autonomy Skydio is known for, taking a huge leap forward, thanks to 10x increases in onboard compute power and navigation camera resolution in an airframe that can go from a backpack to airborne in less than 40 seconds.
X10 fits directly into existing drone operating procedures and also opens up a future of more scalable operating paradigms: 24×7 operations with NightSense autonomous flight in zero-light environments, fully automated data capture with 3D Scan, flight control by web browser from anywhere in the world via onboard 5G and Remote Flight Deck, and 1-operator-to-many-drone controls. The company built these capabilities because the firm envisions a world where drones themselves become basic infrastructure, providing a perfect digital picture in real time of the things that matter most to those who need it.
Using drones to respond to 911 calls – a concept known as Drone as First Responder (DFR) have a transformative impact on public safety. X10 is the perfect tool to get started with DFR. The X10 can be launched on scene by officers on patrol, just as they do today, but then taken over and flown remotely, providing real-time aerial support to those on the ground, and enabling agencies that deploy it to start leveraging remote operations.
The Ukraine’s courageous defense against Russia’s invasion has illustrated how critical drones are, but this conflict also demonstrates that, on a modern battlefield, GPS and radio link jamming are the norm. Small, smart, and survivable drones are the antidote. X10D (a model available exclusively for military operators and federal agencies) features a multi-band radio with dynamic frequency selection making it link jamming-resistant, and its visual navigation system means that it can fly fully autonomously without GPS.
Critical infrastructure operators from State Departments of Transportation to Telecommunications companies to Energy Utilities have started using drones to inspect their assets. X10’s onboard AI and autonomy lowers the training barrier, enabling anyone in the organization to take full advantage of X10’s best-in-class sensors to detect everything from a 0.1mm crack in concrete to a failed solar cell via thermal inspection.
As drones have become increasingly important for critical industries, it’s also become increasingly clear that we can’t rely on systems beholden to the policies of foreign adversaries. Skydio started investing in U.S.-based manufacturing capacity in 2016 at a time when many had written off the possibility of a U.S.-drone company, let alone one manufacturing in the U.S..
The company is also announcing Skydio Extend, a set of APIs, workflows, and integrations that make Skydio an open platform and deliver end-to-end solutions for customers with partners such as Axon, ESRI, and Trimble.
A Skydio X10 video is available for viewing at this direct link…
This article’s author is Adam Bry, CEO and Co-Founder, Skydio