Small Drones Need Machine Learning to Make a Difference

For the military, video surveillance delivered by drones is a blessing and a bit of a curse. The advantages of having eyes in the sky are obvious, whether they're over broad swaths of land or more focused areas. The widely used MQ-9 Reaper, for example, can fly for 27 hours at 25,000 feet, covering about 1,500 miles, and unarmed drones can stay aloft for even longer. Smaller, man-portable and micro drones can see over the hill, around the corner, or watch over an entire town. They provide a view that commanders otherwise wouldn't have, and they do it without putting personnel at risk.