How DroneShield Thrives Within A Controversial Industry

Aside from the 2016 Presidential election, there is nothing quite as polarizing in our modern discourse as drones. Anecdotes of drone use constantly make headlines, however despite this immense media attention, the technology remains an enigma to many.The future of drones is shrouded in mystery and the potential for their mainstream use is, at present, quite ambiguous. Yet DroneShield is helping shape this narrative. “Delivering drone detection worldwide” is their goal, while the company also remains fundamentally pro drone. The CEO of DroneShield, James Walker, discusses how the company is pioneering the conversation around drones and how he was able to form a business around something so controversial.

As drones are such a hot topic right now, what sort of content and narrative has DroneShield, as an inherent leader in this discourse, produced around the mainstream use of drones?

DroneShield is a pro-drone company and as such endorses the use of drones in a way which benefits and protects the community and economy, but at the same time is interested in public safety & national security. Our content and narrative has traditionally been focused on bringing attention to the growing number of incidents which are affecting organizations, governments, public, law enforcement, and defense sectors to speed up their understanding of the inherent risks that come with increased drone and UAV availability for everyday consumers.

As the conversation around drones is often polarizing, how does DroneShield not get too political and how does it attempt to remove itself from overstated controversy?

As mentioned earlier, DroneShield is conscious of supporting (in parallel) - the growth and the safety of the drone industry – we genuinely believe in the advances and new frontiers that this space will deliver, but are just as conscious about our need to ensure we can continue to be the leading voice and the company industries turn to when looking to implement a far-reaching/global drone safety and security solution.

How has DroneShield responded to legal issues, particularly in regards to laws that dictate you can’t take action against a drone that's flying in a public airspace?

As a global operator, DroneShield is very understanding that different countries move at different paces in regards to evolving legislation. On the one hand, one of our roles is to ensure we are positioned to serve all markets regardless of their legislative stance with the products we have in market, and on the other side of this, we continue to work with respective authorities and industry voices in their given countries to evolve legislation to a point where it makes sense.With drone incidents on the rise each day around the globe, it’s inevitable that law enforcement and government will drive legislative change to adapt to the change in their enforcing environments.

As DroneShield is part of a very new industry, in what ways is the company shaping the use of drones and dictating the path this technology is taking?

As we have had product in market for over 2 years now, DroneShield does get approached by manufacturers of drones to discuss our technology and its applications – and we also believe by being pioneers in the drone security market, we will indirectly shape the way consumers will think twice about using their drones safely and within the law.

In what ways has DroneShield utilized the somewhat controversial nature of drones to garner visibility and attention from prominent media outlets?

DroneShield merely brings attention to past, present and potential future incidents which either have happened, are currently happening or are likely to happen across the globe. To minimize the damage & loss that drones can cause, our role is to make sure we stay one step ahead of the curve and ensure we don’t end up in a position where there are no solutions to the 12M drones forecast to be in circulation across the globe by 2020.

What general advice could you offer early stage founders looking to break into an industry that is very new and even a bit mysterious to many?

Don’t lose sight of your vision. Keep a close eye on current (and future) consumer trends and behaviors – and stick to your plan; whilst remaining flexible enough to adapt to changes in the market.