Redwood City, Calif. Skydio in Redwood City, California, has unveiled its first product: the R1 autonomous flying camera in what company officials consider a step toward the future of autonomous drones and enabler of a new type of visual storytelling.
R1 was built from the ground up for autonomous flight by a team of researchers and engineers. R1 is powered by the Skydio Autonomy Engine, enabling it to see and understand the world around it so that it can fly safely at high speeds while avoiding obstacles, even in dense and challenging environments. It can see people and anticipate how they will move, letting R1 make intelligent decisions about how to get the smoothest, most cinematic footage in real time.
“The promise of the self-flying camera has captured people’s imaginations, but today’s drones still need to be flown manually for them to be useful,” says Adam Bry, CEO and co-founder of Skydio. “We’ve spent the last four years solving the hard problems in robotics and AI necessary to make fully autonomous flight possible.
“We’re incredibly excited about the creative possibilities with R1, and we also believe that this technology will enable many of the most valuable drone applications for consumers and businesses over the coming years,” Bry adds.
Built for early-adopters, R1 works with Skydio’s mobile app to capture 4K video. Users set the self-flying camera to follow them and control it with the camera app on their phone.
Additional features of the R1 include:
Full Autonomy.
- The Skydio Autonomy Engine sees the world through R1’s 13 cameras, giving it the ability to map and understand the world in real-time, allowing it to be fully autonomous and independently capture footage that once required a Hollywood film crew.
- Powered by NVIDIA Jetson, an AI supercomputer, R1 is able to make intelligent decisions, plan real-time movements, and navigate complex environments.
Smartphone Simplicity.
- Launching R1 is as easy as swiping up with one finger in the Skydio app. Capturing dynamic shots takes a single tap on one of the available cinematic modes like Follow, Orbit, or Side.
- After you land, make HD-video clips of your flight with the Skydio app, perfect for instantly sharing your story.
Designed and Built in California.
- R1 is built with cutting-edge aerospace materials — including lightweight aluminum and carbon fiber — in a slim design that fits in your backpack.
- Each Skydio R1 Frontier Edition is made at Skydio’s corporate headquarters in Redwood City, Calif., ensuring each one operates at peak performance.
Skydio’s R1 is available now in the USA and Canada for $2499 USD.
Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Redwood City, California, Skydio is a robotics company that makes flying tools that free your hands and mind. Backed by IVP, Playground Global, NVIDIA, Accel and Andreessen Horowitz, Skydio recently closed a $42 million Series B, bringing its total funding to $70 million. The company’s first product, R1, is a fully autonomous camera that flies itself by combining artificial intelligence, computer vision, and advanced robotics into a tool that anyone can pick up and use in minutes.
