Testifying for the China Select Committee and Policy Restrictions on Chinese Drones
Last week I was asked to testify before Congress’s China Select Committee in a hearing on “Chips, Ships, and Drones.” The committee exists because Congress recognizes the threat China poses to our national security, and they held this hearing in particular because they see drones as a key vulnerability. As bipartisan policymakers are paying more attention, the debate in the drone industry around Chinese drones, US drones, and the future of the market is raging. As the leading US company, a few folks have aimed a pretty extreme level of hate at Skydio, claiming that we are “responsible for restrictions on Chinese drones because we’re focusing all of our energy on trying to lobby our competitors out of the market.” I’m writing to address this head-on.
Are increasing restrictions on Chinese drones really just protectionist measures based on lobbying by the US drone industry? No. Government actions against Chinese drones predate Skydio even having a product, let alone doing any government advocacy work. Do we believe that relying on these drones for applications like national defense, critical infrastructure inspection, and public safety is generally a bad idea? Yes. Do we advocate for having a strong US drone industry? Absolutely. And does this sometimes involve conversations with policymakers about the risks of Chinese drones? Yes. The answers we always give are in line with what I said publicly when I was asked these questions by members of Congress: in my view, the risks are real, but any action to restrict Chinese drones should be accompanied by a long transition period and funding to support end-users’ transition to American or allied-made drones. On the Countering CCP Drone Act in particular – we had nothing to do with it and have not lobbied in favor of it.
Our government relations work is a fraction of a percent of our overall budget and my focus as CEO. For a company building heavily regulated devices that serve heavily regulated industries, and has a $100M+ government business spanning the US DoD and state and local governments, we have a tiny government relations team with tiny spend; they are focused primarily on laws that enable our customers to do more with drones and supporting the budgets our government customers depend on to run their drone programs. This kind of work - or lobbying - is simply how selling to the government works. If you’re selling to a private company you want to pitch the C-suite because they set the budget and the priorities. If you’re selling to the government you want to pitch policymakers that do the same.
Restricting the use of Chinese drones in critical sectors is one of the least controversial, most bipartisan issues in the country. The existence of the China Select Committee before which I testified is testament to this. You can also just look at the vote totals on things like the Countering CCP Drones Act - again, a bill we have not lobbied for - which was approved 21-0 in subcommittee and 43-0 in full committee. The Department of Defense, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security have all declared Chinese drones a national security risk. Drones are a small data point on a much larger trend line spanning TikTok, Huawei, cars, chips, and more. For decades, policymakers have expressed concerns about Chinese industrial policy, trade policy, and subsidies in key sectors like drones, aimed at wiping out competition and winning leverage via market dominance.
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You can disagree with the US government actions at large, across multiple sectors, but to blame Skydio for all of this is nuts. I encourage anyone curious to watch the testimony and see for themselves. Listen to the perspectives of the members of Congress from both parties. Listen to the questions I was asked and how I answered them. You can also check out articles like this that give a useful 3rd party perspective.
I am not surprised or bothered that DJI’s talking points on the issue focus on Skydio. They are desperately trying to misdirect. I’m also not surprised that their network of resellers and other folks with an economic dependence on DJI repeat these talking points. The only thing that bums me out is to see a few folks within the communities of drone users we serve attack Skydio - especially public safety - for whom we have so much respect, and are so motivated to support.
Skydio’s not perfect and our products aren’t perfect, but we are incredibly passionate, extremely determined, and always improving. We’re not out to prove critics wrong - my motivation is making our customers successful. Perhaps in doing so, we’ll win over some of our critics with our products and our passion for your success. We are 3.5 years into our journey in serving professional drone operators and we are making rapid progress. Anyone who has flown one of our products will experience the benefits of autonomy technology that nothing else on the market has. Likewise, anyone who has flown an X10 will see the progress we’ve made in all the other dimensions of the product necessary to deliver an extremely capable and well-rounded device. I hope that anyone who interacts with Skydio will experience folks who match your passion for your work and will do everything in their power to make you successful.
See you all out there in the field.
Software Development Manager @ Amazon | Application Security, Machine Learning
5moSorry but as a former customer (and one that was abandoned by you because I'm in the consumer drone market) I have zero trust in you or your companies intentions. Many of us are the reason Skydio didn't die on the vine years ago due to lack of general interest - we preordered the 2 because it was a US-manufactured drone. The thanks we got for this early adoption support was to have your company turn away from the market. And frankly your lobbying efforts should be considered highly suspect by any and all of your early adopters. Your violation of customer trust as far as I am concerned makes the distrust in you and your company completely warranted.
Partner at McGuireWoods
6moInterested in your thoughts, if any, on my recently awarded Patent 12,007,206 https://ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/12007206
Customer Success Leader @ OpenText | Driving Customer Satisfaction
6moFrom reading your responses to criticism- I get the idea that the team at skydio is open to both listening to and learning from critics. I applaud this approach, and look forward to the advances you folks will undoubtedly make!
Defense Autonomous Systems | T-Shaped, Generalized Specialist
6moThank you for sharing, Adam Bry. This is a contentious topic that gets emotional very quickly. It is understandable how many people are hyperfocused on the inconvenience to their own microcosm, which is regrettable. I believe Congress has the luxury of a broader perspective with a longer time horizon. The years it will take the US to gain parity with China in this particular market will be uncomfortable, but necessary for a greater good.
"Just Do(ing) It, Husband, Father, UAS / Drone Delivery, Space Operations"
6moEmbedding a team in Ukraine seems contradictory to helping grow the US commercial drone space Adam Bry.