How best can you describe the journey UVify since its humble beginnings to where it is now?
That’s a great question. If I were to use a word for those interested in aerial vehicles might best relate to, I think the word would be turbulent—but what startup doesn’t experience turbulence? The trick is to climb above and pass through the turbulence, which I’m happy to say the company has done successfully. That doesn’t mean there won’t be other instances of turbulence, of course not. But as a company, we’re quite adept at identifying and navigating such instances.
What are the various products and services that UVify has in offer currently?
Currently, we’ve a two-pronged approach. One is our swarm drone light show business. We offer a complete turnkey solution with our IFO drone to customers all over the world. The IFO is the world’s most commercially successful and widely used swarm drone light show and can be seen in almost all of the major events which utilize drone shows. Some examples are the Superbowl, BTS, Drake, the recurring shows in Sydney, the Halo series release, and many more.
We also offer the IFO-S and IFO-SX swarm research drones. These are open platforms and are selected by more research organizations that any other platform in the industry. Our customers range from universities, to corporate research divisions, to government agencies. IFO-S is the drone used in the DARPA OFFset program.
In addition to the two aforementioned businesses, we are constantly developing new products and technologies and offer other products which are related to the broader drone/robotics sector.
What is your say on the integration or utilization of emerging technologies in Drone sector?
There are many exciting developments taking place with regards to the integration or utilization of emerging technologies in the Drone sector. Indeed, the work in swarm technologies is of particular interest. Further, there are other amazing developments taking place, such as the new ways of using sensors with drones to develop digital twins and building metaverse models.
What kind of phenomenal transformations have you witnesses in the Drone Swarm space with the outbreak of pandemic Covid-19?
With regards to the drone swarm space at the outbreak of the pandemic, one of the applications that emerged was using drone light show swarms to deliver public messages on a massive scale. Another is task allocation with smart contracts and providing financial rewards to drones in swarms, which will prove transformative in swarm robotics. Military research in swarm drones also dramatically increased during this period. The research with operating swarms and utilizing blockchain technologies will game-changer in the industry. With regards to drone swarms, blockchain technologies will play a critical role with future application developments.
Can you talk about the employment opportunities Drone industry is capable of creating in the next 2-5 years period?
Absolutely. Over the next 2–5-year period the drone industry will create an abundance of new employment opportunities. And these will not only come in the form of hardware or software engineering, business, and the traditional areas of employment. Rather, we’ll see the emergence of new sorts of employment, which have hitherto to be envisioned. Indeed, the next few years will prove to be even more exciting times for the drone industry.
What are your wishes for the Drone industry in the New Year 2022?
One of my wishes for the drone industry in 2022 is for it to create more great jobs. Another wish is for the technology to be increasingly used to help the planet in ways such as fighting global warming, protecting endangered species, and reducing other threats to our planet and its inhabitants.
A person of your stature will always be an inspiration for the future generations. Would you like to deliver an inspirational message for them?
Thank you. Yes, the world is now going through a hyper-transformative period. Many of our existing beliefs with regards to work, wealth, the universe, and more will likely be upended. As such, it’s crucial for you to follow your dream and not waste time doing something that does not align with your vision. If you’re working at a job for which you have no passion, change it, remember that you can always find another job, or create your own.
