Airware, DJI Launch Independent Efforts

UAV companies Airware and DJI both announced they have created separate funding mechanisms for startup companies seeking backing in the unmanned systems business marketplace, according to AUVSI.

Airware announced it is launching the Commercial Drone Fund, a method of financially supporting commercial drone businesses active in promising new areas. DJI has partnered with venture capital firm Accel to launch SkyFund.
 
The Commercial Drone Fund will post $250,000 to $1 million in companies active in sensor hardware, software applications, cloud-based aerial data analysis tools, drone-based services and complete solutions for specific industries.
 
“While the commercial drone industry is evolving rapidly, we still see gaps in the ecosystem,” says Airware CEO Jonathan Downey. “The Commercial Drone Fund will identify and boost the rising stars that are advancing important drone-related initiatives, such as powerful new sensors, intelligent analytics or innovative field services. I know how hard it is to raise early money in a new space, and I want to help other entrepreneurs get further faster.”
 
Redbird, a cloud data analysis company located in Paris, and Sky-Futures, an oil and gas data capture and analysis company based in London, received the first two investments, but, according to an Airware press release, the company will invest in dozens more over the next two years.
 
Downey, who serves as the general partner for the fund, has helped raise $40 million in funding for Airware since the company started in 2011. The fund is a separate entity from Airware, and the company is not an investor.

While it’s not a requirement for funding, many of the companies funded by the Commercial Drone Fund use the Airware’s Aerial Information Platform.
 
Meanwhile, SkyFund will in particular go toward developers building on the DJI software development kit, according to a company press release. The company will pledge product and technical resources and platform-level support in addition to funding. Both DJI and Accel have contributed equally to the $10 million available.
 
"SkyFund was created to develop new and amplify existing technology from around the world by championing developers and sparking a sense of curiosity about unmanned vehicles and services," says Eric Cheng, DJI’s general manager for San Francisco and director of aerial imaging. "Hundreds of developers already use DJI's platform, and SkyFund enables us to fund developers and businesses that imagine new opportunities."

(Image from file)

FMI: www.commercialdronefund.com, www.skyfund.vc