Skydio X2 recognized with CES 2021 Best of Innovation Award

The Skydio X2 – an AI-enhanced drone made for Enterprise and First Responder use – has been recognized with an award prior to CES 2021. The virtual convention gets fully under way January 12.

The CES is the biggest consumer electronics show around. And part of the excitement around the event comes from seeing the products and technologies that are recognized with awards. You always know that if it’s been singled out for attention at this show that it’s likely worth looking at. This year, the Skydio X2 drone has been recognized with a CES 2021 Best of Innovation Award.

Let’s take a closer look.

What are the Best of Innovation Awards?

Well, the CES Innovation Awards program is an annual affair, owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). A panel of judges looks at design and engineering criteria in some 28 product categories. Those judges include designers, engineers, members of the media, and more.

This year, they’ve singled out the Skydio X2 as a winner in the Drones and Unmanned Systems category.

Built for business… The X2 is suitable for military use

It’s a selection that makes Skydio CEO and cofounder Adam Bry pretty happy:

We are excited and honored to receive the CES 2021 Best of Innovation Award for the X2. This award is a testament to our forward-thinking vision for autonomous drones and to the incredible work of our engineering team. The X2 delivers groundbreaking intelligence and robustness that allows professional pilots to get the job done faster, more accurately, and with greater peace of mind. Our goal is to make drones easier and safer to use than ever, while opening up entirely new use cases based on autonomous flight.

Adam Bry, Skydio CEO/cofounder

The Skydio X2

The Skydio X2 is a pretty interesting design, incorporating AI into a rugged frame with extended flight times. Skydio’s news release explains the company’s view of its value proposition:

Skydio X2 is the company’s new autonomous drone for enterprise and public sector customers. Skydio X2 pairs Skydio Autonomy, an AI-driven system that gives drones the skills of an expert pilot, with a foldable, highly portable airframe that leverages hyper-strength composites to withstand the most demanding environments. X2 mounts a dual 12MP color optical plus 320×256 FLIR® thermal sensor, and is equipped with GPS-based night flight and strobe lighting, making it ready for both day and night operations, while providing up to 35 min of flight time on a single battery. X2 provides the ultimate aerial data collection solution for situational awareness, asset inspection, and security patrol. Skydio X2 is designed, assembled, and supported in the USA and it is NDAA compliant providing a higher degree of supply chain security.

Skydio news release

The Skydio is also the star of a new video series, called X2D: Ready for Duty. Here’s the trailer, which gives you a glimpse:

This year’s conference is virtual

No surprise here, but CES 2021 is a virtual gathering. There really wasn’t any other choice in the matter, given that a gathering of this size would have been a COVID-19 super-spreader event.

Given that the CES is always such a hands-on event – walking for miles to see the latest and greatest – it will be interesting to see how the virtual version plays out. DroneDJ is accredited, and we’ll certainly bring you the latest from news from the convention floor.

Errr… actually, let’s say the latest news from my laptop. Either way, we’ve got you covered!

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