Predictions about the billions of dollars that drone technology represents are as pervasive as they are extreme. Drone industry experts are currently tracking over 75 firms that offer drone market reports or forecasts of some type, all of which offer various opinions and numbers around what sort of an impact the technology will enable in industries like construction and agriculture as well as maritime and offshore services. It's easy and in some cases justified to get excited about the potential of the technology, but many of these predictions are based on how the drones might be utilized, as opposed to the difference they're actually making. It's why figuring out the ROI of UAVs is a key consideration when it comes to adoption, and it's why the current applications of drones in maritime and offshore services are so important to consider. The use cases of today are what will make some of those billion dollar predictions possible, and makes it essential to see these uses explored in depth and detail at industry events.

This week, the French secret service (Groupe de sécurité de la présidence de la République, or GSPR) took down a drone that was flying in the airspace above Fort de Brégançon. This spot on the French Riviera is well known as the summer home of the French presidents. It's unclear whether President Emmanuel Macron and his wife were in residence at the time. The concern over the drone centers on whether it might have been an assassination attempt on the French president. Earlier this month, the Venezuelan president may have been targeted in a drone attack.

Engineers at Caltech have developed a new control algorithm that enables a single drone to herd an entire flock of birds away from the airspace of an airport. The work is described in "Robotic Herding of a Flock of Birds Using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle," published in the IEEE Transactions on Robotics. The project was inspired by the 2009 "Miracle on the Hudson," when US Airways Flight 1549 struck a flock of geese shortly after takeoff and pilots Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffrey Skiles were forced to land in the Hudson River off Manhattan. "The passengers on Flight 1549 were only saved because the pilots were so skilled," says Soon-Jo Chung, an associate professor of aerospace and Bren Scholar in the Division of Engineering and Applied Science as well as a JPL research scientist, and the principal investigator on the drone herding project. "It made me think that next time might not have such a happy ending. So I started looking into ways to protect airspace from birds by leveraging my research areas in autonomy and robotics."

Canada's rankings in innovation has lagged that of other peer nations for decades despite government efforts to address this issue. Considering its success in developing research programs at its universities, its mediocre rankings overall in technology development is disappointing. Those programs alone have not been enough to translate into entrepreneurial innovation. A 2017 C.D. Howe Institute study points out that, even though Canadians have been at the forefront of breakthroughs in emerging technologies, in many cases, the chief beneficiaries of those breakthroughs have been other nations' economies. Canada needs to take a stronger role in building an environment in which Canadian know-how spurs Canadian business growth. According to a 2017 PwC global survey, Canadian companies stand significantly ahead of their global counterparts in having a dedicated team for digital innovation, with 54% of Canadian respondents reporting that their company does, as opposed to 43% of global respondents. Looking deeper, though, shows a far less innovative spirit, as 47% of respondents said that their pursuit of digital innovation takes the form of seeking to copy others' innovations rather than pursuing their own. Already a decade ago, experts recognized factors that constrain Canadian innovation growth. A 2009 study by the Council of Canadian Academies pointed to two key issues that have held Canadian businesses back from prioritizing innovation in their business strategies. The first issue deals with what has been called "the resource curse." Canada is largely "upstream" in the international supply chain, providing raw materials for other businesses that create products that are in turn passed down the value chain until they reach the stage of finished products sold to end customers. That places Canada in a position far distant from end customers, whose evolving needs spur businesses at the downstream end of the supply chain to adapt, which, in turn, spurs innovation.

Burlington is home to the nation's first permanent drone racing obstacle course, according to local news affiliate, WCAX. A link has been sent to your friend's email address. A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Burlington is home to the nation's first permanent drone racing obstacle course, according to local news affiliate, WCAX.

Radio jamming systems apparently thwarted an attempted presidential assassination with improvised drone bombs in Venezuela. On Saturday 4th August, President Nicolas Maduro's speech at an outdoor rally was interrupted by two explosions. Seven soldiers on parade were injured, three critically. Others scattered while bodyguards rushed to protect the president with bulletproof shields. Witnesses reported seeing two multicopter drones which crashed into a nearby apartment building and exploded.

CARACAS – Venezuela's all-powerful constituent assembly was to launch proceedings Wednesday to try opposition lawmakers over a failed "attack" on President Nicolas Maduro, who also accused exiled opposition leader Julio Borges over the incident. Constituent Assembly chief Diosdado Cabello called the session to strip the lawmakers of their parliamentary immunity so they could face trial for the alleged and failed bid to kill the president. "When justice comes, it hits hard," Cabello said. Maduro and his government said the president had been targeted by two flying drones each carrying 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of powerful C4 plastic explosives. But details of Saturday's incident remain unclear, with conflicting information coming from various sources. The Maduro administration said Colombia -- including ex-President Juan Manuel Santos, who ended his term Tuesday -- had collaborated on the attack with the "ultra-far-right" Venezuelan opposition, and it was financed by unnamed figures in Florida.

Drones aren't usually allowed to go near airports unless they serve a purpose, like herding flocks of birds away from the airspace where they could put planes full of people in jeopardy. Manually controlled drones can be unreliable, though: If the operator gets too aggressive and spooks the birds, the flock could scatter and become even more unmanageable. That's why a team of researchers from Caltech have developed an algorithm that teaches unmanned aerial vehicles how to autonomously (and effectively) herd birds away from airport airspace. The engineers said they were inspired by the 2009 US Airways Flight 1549 incident that came to be known as "Miracle on the Hudson." After taking off from LaGuardia, the plane struck a flock of geese and lost all engine power. The only reason it didn't crash was because the pilots were highly skilled and were able to perform a water landing on the Hudson river.

President Nicolas Maduro has accused two opposition legislators of having roles in the drone attack that Venezuelan officials have called an assassination attempt on the leader, and his allies are moving against the accused.

CARACAS, Venezuela – President Nicolas Maduro went on television Tuesday night to accuse one of Venezuela's most prominent opposition leaders of being linked to a weekend assassination attempt using drones. Maduro said statements by several of the six suspects already arrested pointed to involvement by Julio Borges, an opposition leader living in exile in Colombia. "Several of the declarations indicated Julio Borges. The investigations point to him," Maduro said, though he provided no details on Borges' alleged role. Critics of Maduro's socialist government had said immediately following Saturday evening's attack that they feared the unpopular leader would use the incident as an excuse to round up opposition politicians amid widespread unrest over Venezuela's devastating economic collapse.