New Spinning Drone Hides In Plain Sight
To design invisible drones, researchers have tried camouflage, transparent materials and light-bending optical systems. But engineers at Northwestern University used “motion blur,” which an announcement from the school notes is the effect that makes fast-spinning fans seem to disappear.
“The drone spins up to 25 times per second, which is too fast for the human eye to see clearly. While it isn’t … ⌘ Read more
Drones Offer Alternative to Balloons For Weather Research
The U.S. company Meteomatics has created an automated weather-monitoring system that uses drones to collect atmospheric data at multiple altitudes before returning to recharge and upload their findings. The so-called Meteobase, which consists of a base station on the ground with a drone that can be launched and recovered automatically, “is highly weather resist … ⌘ Read more
DoorDash Is Building Its Own Drone Delivery Business
DoorDash has launched DoorDash Air, an in-house drone-delivery program that has just received FAA certification for commercial operations. “This does not mean DoorDash’s custom-built drones will be delivering burritos tomorrow, or even next month,” notes TechCrunch. “The company didn’t provide a detailed timeline for when its aircraft would be used in operations.” From the re … ⌘ Read more
South Korea Plans To Train Entire Military As ‘Drone Warriors’
“South Korea plans to train every single member of its nearly half-million-strong military to operate drones as easily as they handle personal firearms,” reports Ars Technica:
The goal is to make drones a “universal combat tool” for all troops by training them to use drones like a “second personal weapon,” said Ahn Gyu-back, South Korea’s Minister of … ⌘ Read more
California Sheriff Says Their Drone Disarmed a Suspect, Shares Video on Instagram
The Los Angeles Police Department says about 1,500 police agencies across America have drone programs, reports SFGate, and 58 of those drone-using police agencies are in California.
The Sacramento County sheriff’s office recently posted drone footage on Instagram set to theme from “Mission: Impossible,” claiming “ … ⌘ Read more
The Secret Revolution in Battery Technology: 3-D Printing
“There’s a revolution in battery technology hiding in plain sight,” reports The Wall Street Journal. “The 3-D printing of batteries has the potential to put energy storage inside any device.
“This will enable lightweight and long-lasting consumer gadgets, long-range military drones and even nanoscale robots.”
Almost all the innovations we regularly hear ab … ⌘ Read more
You Can No Longer Fly Or Purchase a Drone In Beijing
Longtime Slashdot reader schwit1 shares a report from PetaPixel: China dominates the consumer drone market, so it is perhaps surprising that it is no longer possible to fly or even purchase a drone in Beijing. The new law that passed last month makes it illegal to buy, rent, or fly a drone without prior approval from the authorities. Users must also complete an online t … ⌘ Read more
Stalled Ukraine security pact could leave Australia ‘fighting with one hand behind its back’
Australia’s ability to tap into Ukraine’s expertise in drones and other advanced technologies is being hampered by delays in striking a security pact. ⌘ Read more
(g+) Taiwan tensions: Uncertainty plagues Taiwan’s drone industry after budget cuts
Experts warn stalled domestic procurement could impede cooperation with US partners ( Militär, Politik)
Pokemon Go Data Was Used To Help Train AI Systems Being Developed For Military Drones
Pokemon Go players’ optional location scans reportedly helped train Niantic Spatial’s visual positioning system, which uses camera imagery and 3D maps to navigate when GPS is unavailable or jammed. According to DroneXL, that technology is now being paired with Vantor’s drone navigation software for milita … ⌘ Read more
Fully Autonomous Drones Have Killed Human Soldiers For the First Time
Longtime Slashdot reader MattSparkes shares a report from NewScientist, captioned: “For years we’ve had unconfirmed reports, rumors, hints… now we know.” From the report: Fully autonomous drones with no human oversight have killed soldiers on the battlefield for the first time. This is according to a senior figure in the Ukrainian def … ⌘ Read more
Pokémon Go Scans Trained the Navigation Tech for Military Drones
Article URL: https://dronexl.co/2026/06/09/pokemon-go-scans-niantic-vantor-military-drone-navigation/
Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48487029
Points: 16
# Comments: 0 ⌘ Read more
Soccer Fans, You’re Being Watched
From anti-drone tech to face recognition, 2026 World Cup stadiums in the US, Canada, and Mexico are subjecting fans to an array of surveillance tech. Here’s what you need to know. ⌘ Read more
‘Extremely vile’: Russia strikes Chernobyl nuclear plant as Zelensky meets European leaders
A drone blasted a fuel storage facility at the decommissioned nuclear power plant in Ukraine on the eve of talks in London about the need for stronger air defence. ⌘ Read more
Des drones ukrainiens ont touché Saint-Pétersbourg, où s’ouvre le Forum économique
Des drones ont frappé le terminal pétrolier de Saint-Pétersbourg et la base militaire Kronstadt dans la ville, selon le président ukrainien, Volodymyr Zelensky. Par ailleurs, une frappe ukrainienne de drone sur un bus reliant Moscou à Simferopol, en Crimée annexée par la Russie, a fait sept morts et onze blessés. ⌘ Read more
La Russie accusée de détourner les drones ukrainiens pour viser des pays européens
De plus en plus de drones lancés par la Russie et l’Ukraine s’écrasent dans les pays voisins. Des incidents dus au nombre croissant d’engins mais aussi, accusent les responsables politiques européens, à des provocations délibérées de Moscou. ⌘ Read more
La Roumanie affirme avoir été touchée par un drone russe
Dans la nuit de jeudi à vendredi, un drone russe a atterri sur un immeuble résidentiel et fait deux blessés légers à Galaţi, près de la frontière avec l’Ukraine. ⌘ Read more
Drone Ports and Funding Mayhem: Trump’s Ballroom Has Turned Toxic
“Republicans are just going to have to suck it up and get it done,” says one Trump aide about the funding melee. The votes, though, may simply not be there. ⌘ Read more
Syos expands drone fleet with underwater minesweeper
New Zealand drone company Syos Aerospace says it is closely monitoring the war in Iran and believes its uncrewed underwater vehicles could be suited to detecting and clearing mines in the Strait of Hormuz, as it expands its autonomous systems portfolio.
Undersea expansion ⌘ Read more
DHS Plans Experiment Running ‘Reconnaissance’ Drones Along the US-Canada Border
Autonomous drones and ground vehicles will stream “battlefield intelligence” over 5G along the US-Canada border in a bilateral DHS experiment this fall. ⌘ Read more
DroneShield insiders sold $67 million in shares. The watchdog has questions
ASIC has launched an investigation into the counter-drone group’s disclosures, six months after a botched contract announcement and a $67 million director sell-off. ⌘ Read more
Papa Johns Is Getting Into Drone Delivery—but Not for Pizza
A new collaboration with Alphabet’s Wing will only deliver sandwiches. It demonstrates the tricky parts of taking to the sky. ⌘ Read more
Do City Delivery Drones Make Sense? No One Knows, but They’re Flying Over NYC
One of the country’s busiest airspaces has a new kind of flying machine—maybe temporarily. ⌘ Read more
Au Liban, le Hezbollah recourt de plus en plus aux drones kamikazes
La milice chiite utilise des quadricoptères téléguidés, peu onéreux, pour harceler les soldats israéliens dans la zone d’occupation que leur armée a délimitée dans le sud du Liban. À une semaine des négociations entre les deux pays, les conditions d’une guerre d’usure sont réunies. ⌘ Read more
Using Drones for Cloud-Seeding Can Trigger Rain, Company Claims
Monday a company called Rainmaker announced their rain-triggering technology had produced 143 million gallons of freshwater for Utah and Oregon residents — making them “the first private company in history to validate the results of cloud seeding operations.”
The Deseret News reports:
Founded in 2023, Rainmaker uses drones to disperse silver iodid … ⌘ Read more
Amazon Stuck With Months of Repairs After Drone Strikes On Data Centers
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Amazon’s cloud customers will need to wait several more months before the US tech company can repair war-damaged data centers and restore normal operations in the Middle East. The announcement comes two months after Iranian drone strikes targeted three Amazon data centers in the … ⌘ Read more
Pentagon Wants $54 Billion For Drones
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The US military’s massive $1.5 trillion budget request for the next fiscal year includes what Pentagon officials described as the largest investment in drone warfare and counter-drone technology in US history. The proposed spending on drone and autonomous warfare technologies within the FY2027 budget proposal for the US Department of Defense would … ⌘ Read more
Videos Catch Amazon Delivery Drones Dropping Packages From 10 Feet in the Air
There’s been a few complaints about Amazon’s drone delivery service. “The automated mailmen are dropping off packages from 10 feet in the air,” reports the New York Post, “rendering the contents of each box susceptible to crashing and smashing.”
One example? Tamara Hancock filmed a drone delivering a bottle of Torani fla … ⌘ Read more
Wing Expands Its Drone Delivery Service To the Bay Area
Wing is expanding its drone delivery service to the San Francisco Bay Area. “The drone delivery startup has been rapidly expanding to metro areas across the US, but is now targeting the tech-friendly Silicon Valley region,” reports Engadget. From the report: Going back to its inaugural deliveries, Wing ferried office supplies across Google’s Mountain View campus in … ⌘ Read more
Qatar Helium Shutdown Puts Chip Supply Chain On a Two-Week Clock
Iranian drone strikes shut down a major helium facility in Qatar, removing about 30% of global helium supply and raising concerns for the semiconductor industry, which relies on the gas for chip fabrication. “QatarEnergy declared force majeure on existing contracts on March 4, freeing it from supply obligations to customers,” reports Tom’s Hardwar … ⌘ Read more
Drones vs OTAN : on a perdu la 7ème compagnie
L’exercice Hedgehog-2025 devait être une démonstration de force face à la menace russe. Il s’est transformé en séminaire accéléré sur l’obsolescence programmée des grandes manœuvres blindées. En mai dernier, sur les plaines estoniennes, 16 000 soldats issus de 12 pays de l’Alliance dont une brigade britannique et des unités estoniennes ont appris à leurs dépens […] ⌘ Read more
Amazon’s Bahrain Data Center Targeted By Iran For US Military Support
Iranian state media said on Wednesday that it targeted Amazon’s data center in Bahrain due to the company’s support of the U.S. military. The drone strike that occurred on Sunday disrupted core cloud services and caused “prolonged” outages. Two data centers in the UAE were also damaged by drone strikes. CNBC reports: All of the facilitie … ⌘ Read more
Amazon Cloud Unit’s Data Centers In UAE, Bahrain Damaged In Drone Strikes
sizzlinkitty shares a Reuters report detailing how drone strikes in the Middle East conflict with Iran damaged AWS data centers in the UAE and Bahrain, disrupting core cloud services and causing “prolonged” outages. Following the initial report, where Reuters said “objects” had triggered a fire at the data centers, the article was … ⌘ Read more
US Military Accidentally Shoots Down Border Protection Drone With Laser
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: The U.S. military used a laser Thursday to shoot down a “seemingly threatening” drone flying near the U.S.-Mexico border. It turned out the drone belonged to Customs and Border Protection, lawmakers said. The case of mistaken identity prompted the Federal Aviation Admini … ⌘ Read more
Border Officials Are Said To Have Caused El Paso Closure by Firing Anti-Drone Laser
An anonymous reader shares a report: The abrupt closure of El Paso’s airspace late Tuesday was precipitated when Customs and Border Protection officials deployed an anti-drone laser on loan from the Department of Defense without giving aviation officials enough time to assess the risks to commercial aircraft, … ⌘ Read more
Amazon Delivery Drone Crashes into Texas Apartment Building
“You can hear the hum of the drone,” says a local newscaster, “but then the propellors come into contact with the building, chunks of the drone later seen falling down. The next video shows the drone on the ground, surrounded by smoke…
“Amazon tells us there was minimal damage to the apartment building, adding they are working with the appropriate people … ⌘ Read more
Walmart Announces Drone Delivery, Integration with Google’s AI Chatbot Gemini
Alphabet-owned Wing “is expanding its drone delivery service to an additional 150 Walmart stores across the U.S.,” reports Axios:
[T]he future is already here if you live in Dallas — where some Walmart customers order delivery by Wing three times a week. By the end of 2026, some 40 million Americans, or about 12 percent … ⌘ Read more
Iran Offers To Sell Advanced Weapons Systems For Crypto
Iran is offering to sell advanced weapons systems including ballistic missiles, drones and warships to foreign governments for cryptocurrency, in a bid to use digital assets to bypass western financial controls. From a report: Iran’s Ministry of Defence Export Center, known as Mindex, says it is prepared to negotiate military contracts that allow payment in digita … ⌘ Read more
NYC Inauguration Bans Raspberry Pi, Flipper Zero Devices
Longtime Slashdot reader ptorrone writes: The January 1, 2026, NYC mayoral inauguration prohibits attendees from bringing specific brand-name devices, explicitly banning Raspberry Pi single-board computers and the Flipper Zero, listed alongside weapons, explosives, and drones. Rather than restricting behaviors or capabilities like signal interference or unauth … ⌘ Read more
Israel Deploys World’s First Drone Defense Laser
Israel has operationally deployed Iron Beam, a 100,000-watt laser air-defense system capable of shooting down drones, rockets, and mortars at negligible per-shot cost. According to Tom’s Hardware, it marks the first real-world deployment of a high-energy laser as part of a modern, multi-layered missile defense network. From the report: The Iron Beam is a short-range line-of-sigh … ⌘ Read more
Military Planners Dread the Arctic, ‘Where Drones Drop Dead and GPS Goes Haywire’
An anonymous reader shared this report from the Wall Street Journal:
Sending drones and robots into battle, rather than humans, has become a tenet of modern warfare. Nowhere does that make more sense than in the frozen expanses of the Arctic. But the closer you get to the North Pole, the less useful cutting-edge te … ⌘ Read more
FCC Bans Foreign-Made Drones Over National Security, Spying Concerns
The FCC has banned approval of new foreign-made drones and components, citing “an unacceptable risk” to national security. The move will most heavily impact DJI but it “does not affect drones or drone components that are currently sold in the United States.” Reuters reports: The tech was placed on the commission’s “Covered List,” barring D … ⌘ Read more
Welcome To America’s New Surveillance High Schools
Beverly Hills High School has deployed an AI-powered surveillance apparatus that includes facial recognition cameras, behavioral analysis software, smoke detector-shaped bathroom listening devices from Motorola, drones, and license plate readers from Flock Safety – a setup the district spent $4.8 million on in the 2024-2025 fiscal year and considers necessary given the scho … ⌘ Read more
The U.S. Could Ban Chinese-Made Drones Used By Police Departments
Tuesday the White House faces a deadline to decide “whether Chinese drone maker DJI Technologies poses a national security threat,” reports Bloomberg. But their article notes it’s “a decision with the potential to ground thousands of machines deployed by police and fire departments across the US.”
One person making the case against the drones is … ⌘ Read more
Ukrainians Sue US Chip Firms For Powering Russian Drones, Missiles
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Dozens of Ukrainian civilians filed a series of lawsuits in Texas this week, accusing some of the biggest US chip firms of negligently failing to track chips that evaded export curbs. Those chips were ultimately used to power Russian and Iranian weapon systems, causing wrongful deaths last … ⌘ Read more
No Rise in Radiation Levels at Chernobyl, Despite Damage from February’s Drone Strike
UPDATE (12/7): The New York Times clarifies today that the damage at Chernobyl hasn’t led to a rise in radiation levels:
“If there was to be some event inside the shelter that would release radioactive materials into the space inside the New Safe Confinement, because this facility is no longer sealed t … ⌘ Read more
Ukrainian city hit by ‘massive’ strike as peace talks in US conclude
Russia carried out strikes on Kremenchuk, while its defence ministry said it had shot down 77 Ukrainian drones in several locations. ⌘ Read more
Ukrainian city hit by ‘massive’ strike as peace talks in US conclude
Russia carried out strikes on Kremenchuk, while its defence ministry said it had shot down 77 Ukrainian drones in several locations. ⌘ Read more
Chernobyl’s Protective Shield Can No Longer Confine Radiation, UN Nuclear Watchdog Says
“A structure designed to prevent radioactive leakage at the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine is no longer operational,” reports Politico, “after Russian drones targeted it earlier this year, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog has found.”
[T]he large steel structure “lost its primary safety fun … ⌘ Read more
US says progress made at talks with Ukraine as Russia attacks infrastructure
Moscow launched 653 drones and 51 missiles overnight, most of which were downed, Kyiv says. ⌘ Read more