Episode 016: The Evolution of the Commercial Drone Industry with Brandon Torres Declet

Published: March 14, 2021, 2:48 p.m.

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Christopher Todd, your host, welcomes Brandon Torres Declet to today\\u2019s episode. Brandon is the Co-founder and CEO of Measure and a new member of the Drone Advisory Committee. He shares today how he got involved in the drone industry, founded Measure, became a member of the Drone Advisory Committee, and the evolution of the commercial drone industry.

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Brandon Torres Declet is widely recognized as the leading Latino entrepreneur in the drone industry. As a lawyer, public policy expert, and CEO, Brandon has a unique understanding of drone innovation and a firsthand appreciation for how policy challenges may impact drone operations. In 2014, Brandon co-founded Measure, a leading aerial intelligence company, and as CEO, grew the company to the top five percent of drone firms by revenue. Brandon sold the Measure drone services business to the Aerodyne Group in 2019. Today, Measure offers a drone-agnostic, turnkey aerial intelligence software solution that includes mission planning, data collection, data processing, data analysis, and intelligence reporting that can transform the way businesses make decisions using drones. Under his leadership, Measure completed tens of thousands of missions with zero reportable incidents and collected data on high-value assets.

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Key Takeaways:

[1:28] Brandon shares how he first got involved in unmanned aviation.

[3:23] How did Brandon start in the drone space?

[6:36] We have to find a way of making money even without the regulations.

[10:00] It is hard to start a business; the drone service is like any other business.

[12:04] Brandon talks about the commercial aspect of drones.

[12:32] Brandon shares his perspective about Dronebase.

[14:25].At what point did Brandon shift the business model for Measure?

[17:35] Brandon talks about the pitfalls he wishes he would have avoided.

[20:08] 3D Robotics went through an evolution producing drones and then getting crushed on pricing. Today, the industry has its first unicorn with Skydio. What has shifted?

[23:54] Brandon shares about his role in the Drone Advisory Committee and what he would like to accomplish as a member.

[27:33] In technology, things move at the speed of light but the government does not.

[28:02] Where does Brandon see the value proposition for disaster response and public safety, moving toward?

[29:30] Brandon talks about his plans for the future.

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Mentioned in this episode:

Airborne International Response Team

AIRT is the leading 501(c)(3) non-profit organization supporting Drones For Good and Public Safety UAS

Become a member of Drone Responders for free.

DRONERESPONDERS YouTube Channel

DRONERESPONDERS on Facebook.

Measure

Drone Advisory Committee

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