A Silicon Valley startup is bringing us a lot closer to a future of drone delivery. And it’s starting, with humanitarian aid. Scott Budman reports.
A Silicon Valley startup is bringing us a lot closer to a future of drone delivery. And it’s starting, with humanitarian aid.
Our camera was among the first to see the Zipline drone in action - a drone, resembling a small plane, that can fly up to 40 miles at a time, with the ability to drop off packages on the fly.
Zipline just announced a partnership with UPS to deliver blood and medical supplies to clinics in Rwanda. It’s an early test of the promise of drone delivery, the kind we hear about from much larger companies like Amazon. Zipline says this design makes for frequent and flexible flying.
“With a drone that looks like a plane, compared to a quadcopter you’re used to seeing, we can fly further, faster, and we can fly more reliably,” Keenan Wyrobek, Zipline co-founder, said.
Monday at 6 p.m., business and tech reporter Scott Budman will take a first-look tour inside Zipline’s headquarters, with more details about the new deal to test the delivery drones.
