DroneDeploy Introduces Agentic AI and Robotics Advancements at Horizons 2025
New AI capabilities and platform upgrades aim to improve accuracy, automation and safety
DroneDeploy announced major product innovations at the Horizons 2025 conference in San Francisco. The company says the new solutions will improve how field teams capture and analyze data in construction, energy, utilities and industrial environments.
Mike Winn, CEO and co founder of DroneDeploy, said that the company is focused on solving everyday challenges for work sites. “The future of construction and industrial operations isn’t some distant promise, it’s being built right now on jobsites and in facilities. We are meeting customers where they are, whether that is enhancing the accuracy and automation of their current workflows or preparing them for autonomous robots.”
DroneDeploy reports that its reality capture tools are now used on more than 3 million sites around the world.
AI Agents for Safety, Progress and Asset Management
DroneDeploy introduced three operational AI agents that help automate inspections and reporting.
Progress AI uses advanced models to review job status and deliver updates in minutes. According to the company, this is more than 100 times faster than manual tracking methods.
Safety AI has already detected more than 90 thousand risks on customer projects. New features include a floorplan view and automatic verification when safety issues are resolved.
Inspection AI is the newest agent. It supports predictive maintenance for assets in energy, transportation and utilities. It reviews image data, ranks issue severity and sends results to maintenance software.
“AI agents aren’t just processing data they are reasoning,” said James Stripe, Chief Product Officer at DroneDeploy. “Progress AI understands construction sequences. Safety AI knows how equipment should be used. Inspection AI identifies how assets degrade over time. This is the next frontier: autonomous systems that do the work for you.”
Expansion into Ground Robotics
DroneDeploy shared plans for embodied AI systems that can navigate sites and capture visual data every day. The first ground robots are expected to enter beta testing in 2026. These systems aim to require no special robotics knowledge.
“The challenge of maintaining frequent, consistent capture is solved by robots simply showing up and doing the work,” said Stripe. “What was not possible even six months ago is now becoming reality. We are meeting customers where they are at with docked drones operating on 100 plus projects today and ground robots with embodied AI coming next year.”
Upgraded Accuracy and 3D Capabilities
DroneDeploy also announced enhancements to its aerial and ground platforms. Processing is up to three times faster with notable improvements to image quality. Automated ground control point tagging and accuracy checks support survey grade results.
Cut and fill analysis now includes industry standard grid views and fast quantity exports. A new Gaussian Splats feature provides photorealistic 3D representation of sites.
Winn shared a recent example from a customer project. “We heard from a contractor in Ohio who used DroneDeploy to validate cut fill quantities, catching an 18 percent discrepancy that would have resulted in over 30 thousand dollars in unexpected costs. That is the difference between data you hope is accurate and data you know is accurate.”
DroneDeploy upgraded 3D site documentation as well. Users can scan with a mobile device equipped with LiDAR and create measurable point clouds. Underground utility tracking begins with an integration to the Emlid Reach RX.
The platform also introduces faster loading for large projects and a redesigned Explore interface for interior views.
Early Customer Reactions
Some customers report improvement in performance and safety.
“Safety AI has become an integral part of our safety program. It allows Weddle to expand our oversight to every job and get actionable insights for our field teams,” said Tyce Carmichael, Chief Growth Officer and Chief Information Officer at Weddle Bros. Construction Companies. “Safety AI lets us be proactive in identifying and correcting issues, moving beyond basic compliance to a relentless pursuit of safety. Our safety program is better because of Safety AI, and we have the data to back that up.”
Scott Brown, Construction Technology Manager at Garney Construction, said the platform is helping his team meet accuracy goals. “Automatic verification means I can stop being the data bottleneck and deliver higher accuracy drone data, every time, with less effort.”
DroneDeploy says these innovations support a unified approach that combines aerial drones, cameras, ground robotics and AI. The goal is to give field teams better automation and better information.