Drone market evolving fast but regulators can't keep up

Rapid innovation in the drone industry is causing headaches for regulators in the US and Europe. A report in the Wall Street Journal looks at how regulatory agencies are trying to deal with the fast-paced development in this space. The biggest push is coming from companies that want to implement new technology for their own commercial purposes. This is especially true for companies such as Amazon that target to use UAVs for automated delivery.

While a lot of drone research and development is coming from outside China, where most of the products are manufactured, the country’s drone industry has been focused heavily on the commercial sector as well. DJI, the largest drone company in the world, is based in Shenzhen, where the pace of iterative innovation is very fast. Many of these China-made drones are creating more complexity in the market for off-the-shelf UAVs.

This rapid proliferation of drones has been frustrating mainly because some regulators, including those at the US Federal Aviation Administration, thought they would have time to phase in gradually new rules that would introduce more drones to the airspace. Concerns about drones vary but include things such as mid-air collisions and noise. Many countries in Europe have come up with their own solutions, leading the European Union to start looking into regulations that would apply to all member countries to avoid confusion in the market.

We have written previously about the impact of drone regulations on the market. The US has been doing better than many other areas, most recently ditching the requirement of a pilot's license for commercial drone use. The WSJ's report shows how innovation in China is impacting the market as well. Many China manufacturers are producing drones meant explicitly for commercial use, especially in agriculture.

While it is a positive sign for the health of the market, there are still many roadblocks ahead. Fortunately, regulators in liberal markets tend to value this innovation. FAA chief Michael Huerta said at a conference that regulations need to be changed "in a way that does not stifle the kind of innovation we are seeing."