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DRONES REPORTING TO WORK

Like the internet and GPS before them, drones are evolving beyond their military origin to become powerful business tools. They’ve already made the leap to the consumer market, and now they’re being put to work in commercial and civil government applications from firefighting to farming. That’s creating a market opportunity that’s too large to ignore.

Source: Goldman Sachs Research

NAVIGATING THE HEADWINDS


REWRITING THE RULES

The rapid growth of the drone industry has outpaced the development of rules and systems to govern their use. This uncertainty weighs on innovation and commercial adoption, but anticipated regulatory clarity should unlock demand. NASA is leading a multibillion-dollar effort to develop a US airspace management system capable of safely coordinating manned and unmanned flight, while the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is expected to further ease restrictions that are keeping commercial drones from reaching their full potential.

THE OPPORTUNITY AHEAD

Between now and 2020, we forecast a $100 billion market opportunity for drones—helped by growing demand from the commercial and civil government sectors.

MILITARY

Drones got their start as safer, cheaper and often more capable alternatives to manned military aircraft. Defense will remain the largest market for the foreseeable future as global competition heats up and technology continues to improve.

CONSUMER

The consumer drone market was the first to develop outside the military. Demand has taken off in the last two years and hobbyist drones have become a familiar sight, but there is plenty of room for growth.

COMMERCIAL/CIVIL

The fastest growth opportunity comes from businesses and civil governments. They’re just beginning to explore the possibilities, but we expect they’ll spend $13 billion on drones between now and 2020, putting thousands of them in the sky. Here’s where you might see them.

BUSINESS & CIVIL GOVERNMENT

Drones are already generating climate data, monitoring the borders and more—and they’re just scratching the surface of their commercial potential.

THE JOB OPPORTUNITIES

Total Addressable Market by Industry/Function

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