DRONE NEWS & DJI RUMORS
FCC Confirms Drone Firmware Updates Will Continue Until January 2027
The Federal Communications Commission just answered the question that’s been keeping drone pilots up at night since December. In a new order released yesterday, the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology confirmed that DJI, Autel, and other covered drone manufacturers…
DJI Teases “Lead the Scene” Event for January 29th: RS5 Global Launch Incoming
DJI dropped a teaser on social media today announcing a “Lead the Scene” event scheduled for January 29, 2026, at 12 PM GMT. The short video reveals familiar imagery for anyone who followed the RS5 launch in China earlier this…
Marine Corps Drone Training Finally Unveiled!
The U.S. Marine Corps’ drone training program has finally been announced, and it’s far more impressive than I had anticipated. They are rolling out a service-wide training framework aimed at rapidly expanding the number of small unmanned aircraft system operators…
New Zealand Team Builds an “AI Chainsaw Drone” on a DJI Matrice Platform
A research team in New Zealand just turned a problem that normally means bucket trucks, ladders, and a lot of risk into something that looks like it belongs in a sci-fi workshop: an “AI chainsaw drone.” The “chainsaw drone” project…
Sterling Heights Brings Axon-Skydio DFR Program to Detroit Metro, Funded Entirely by Federal Forfeiture
The photo shows a Skydio drone hovering over a dock outside the Sterling Heights Police Department. It’s a familiar sight in 2026, but not in Michigan, where automated drone response has been slow to take hold despite the state’s heavy…
Yosemite Visitors Fly Drones Freely as Ranger Shortage Guts NPS Enforcement
The New York Times published a feature this week documenting what DroneXL warned about nearly a year ago: federal staffing cuts have created an enforcement vacuum in Yosemite National Park, and visitors are flying drones with impunity. The Times piece,…
UK Ministry of Defence invests £240,000 in drone degree as Army confronts artillery’s decline
When I first covered the NMITE drone degree announcement last month, the funding details were conspicuously absent. Now we have numbers. The Ministry of Defence has committed £240,000 to what officials are calling the UK’s first “drone degree,” with enrollment…
Zipline’s $7.6B Bet: The Economics of Delivering Burritos vs. Saving Lives
The Verge’s Tim Stevens stood on a lawn in Rowlett, Texas last year and watched a strange-looking craft clear the trees, hover overhead, and lower a brown paper package on a thin rope. His lunch had arrived by drone. The…
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry announces homegrown DJI Mavic replacement with longer range
Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s newly appointed Defense Minister, has announced that Ukrainian troops will begin fielding a domestically produced replacement for the Chinese-made DJI Mavic drone. The homegrown alternative promises the same camera quality but with extended flight range, marking a…
Zipline reaches $7.6 billion valuation as Valor Equity Partners leads $600 million funding round
Watching Zipline’s trajectory from a Rwanda-based medical delivery startup to America’s largest autonomous delivery network has been one of the defining stories in commercial drone aviation. The company just reached a $7.6 billion valuation with a $600 million funding round…
FCC Drone Ban Guarantees Higher Prices and Fewer Choices: NBC’s ‘Could’ is Wrong
NBC News published a detailed analysis this weekend examining the FCC’s sweeping foreign drone ban and its likely impact on American consumers. The reporting is solid, the sources are credible, and the conclusion is inevitable. But the headline hedges with…
Renault and Turgis Gaillard Confirm Drone Deal: Europe’s Struggling Automakers Found Their Exit Strategy
Seven months ago, we reported that France’s defense ministry had approached Renault about drone production. At the time, Renault told Reuters that discussions had taken place but no decision had been made. Today, that deal is official, and the partnership…
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