NTT Docomo invests in AI-based autonomous drone developer Sk…

NTT Docomo Ventures has invested in Skydio, a developer of autonomous drones based on AI technologies. No financial details related to the amount of the investment have been disclosed. Skydio is developing drones based on its 10-year experience pioneering autonomous flight. The company commercialized a new drone dubbed ‘Skydio 2’ in 2019. 

Cameras on the drone combined with computer vision technology enable it to understand a 360 degree view of its environment in real time while flying. These technologies are at the core of Skydio’s autonomy engine which is designed to enable the drone to autonomously follow a specified subject avoiding obstacles; it can also avoid collisions even when manually operated. The drone can also safely fly inside a GPS-denied areas (inside buildings for example) using the camera-based technologies.

NTT Docomo Ventures believes that drones with advanced autonomous flight and obstacle avoidance technologies are crucial to accelerate the drone market expansion. The investment and partnership are expected to power Skydio’s market development and international growth.