Read more articles and watch videos from AUVSI Xponential 2021
Attending this year’s AUVSI Xponential show in Atlanta, Ga., has been an experience. It’s the first in-person event I’ve attended this year, and given the current state of affairs with COVID-19, it was interesting traveling to the conference. It is a hybrid show, so you can still attend the virtual conference. In the meantime, if you’re not stopping by Atlanta, you can check out the videos and articles from the conference.
Attendee traffic is definitely lighter than a few years ago, but that was to be expected. The lack of overseas attendees is noticeable and expected, too. The spacing is a bit more open given the number of vendors. Still, the show is significant in the number and variety of companies showing off their wares. On the plus side for me, shooting videos and doing interviews is a lot easier since I don’t have to fight the crowds.
There’s no lack of technology or new products. Our coverage only touches on some of what’s on display at the show. The wide variety ranges from heavy-duty VTOL drones developed by Aergility to maritime marvels like Deep Trekker’s portable remotely operated vehicles (ROVs).
The technology at the show continues to trend toward commercial and military solutions—toys and consumer solutions migrating in the direction of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). We shall see how things fare in January 2022 for those drones.
I’ll be adding more of what I saw at the show as soon as I can, so check out the Top Stories of the Week issue for AUVSI Xponential 2021.