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Do You Know Drones?

The Drone Dominance Warning for US Tech Leaders to Stop Falling Behind China with Bobby Sakaki

23 Oct 2025

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Unlock millions in ROI from your enterprise drone program.Our FREE Enterprise Drone Program Maturity Assessment benchmarks your program against best practices and reveals the strategic initiatives needed to scale.Get your free assessment now! πŸ‘‰ https://bit.ly/droneprogram-maturity-assessmentβ€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”β€”In this micro-podcast episode of the Do You Know Drones Podcast, host Jason San Souci sits down with Bobby Sakaki, the founder and Grand Seer at UAS Nexus, live from the Commercial UAV Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada. The conversation focuses on a tough question: What is going wrong in the drone industry? Bobby shares his concerns about the lack of US government investment in the industrial base, regulatory issues, and the widening gap with foreign competitors.πŸ”‘ Key Takeaways:Lack of US Government Investment: There is not enough investment from the US government in the general industrial base for drones, not just defense.Industrial Base Concern: The US industrial base is not currently building drones at the same scale and quality as an iPhone, causing concern that China will remain ahead.Regulatory Capture: Lobbying and regulatory capture haven't helped the industry, potentially hindering the adoption of quality American-made drones like the Skydio X10.Misleading Legislation: Legislation like the "American Drone Dominance Act" is viewed as misleading and doesn't address the fundamental issue of not having US subsidies to build an industrial base comparable to competitors.Getting in Our Own Way: The US is hindering its own progress in the drone industry, and a massive collaborative effort is needed to move forward.Pivoting to Defense: The industry has pivoted toward defense because that's currently where the money and urgency are, but the focus should be on creating building blocks for the entire industrial base (defense, mapping, inspection, etc.).βŒ› Timestamps:[00:00:00] - Introduction to the podcast and the free Enterprise Drone Program Maturity assessment offer.[00:01:51] - Bobby discusses the lack of US government investment in the industrial base, the scale gap with China, and his worry about the industrial base.[00:02:59] - Bobby critiques the negative effects of regulatory capture and the failure of a DJI ban to help stateside drone manufacturing.[00:03:39] - Jason agrees that the US is getting in its own way and needs to take collaborative steps now.[00:04:49] - Discussion ends with a conference idea and final sign-off from the Commercial UAV Expo.Follow the Guest Bobby Sakaki:πŸ‘‰ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbysakaki/Follow the Host Jason San Souci:πŸ‘‰ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsansouci/πŸ”— More from Do You Know Drones:πŸ‘‰ Website: https://www.droneopsusa.com πŸ‘‰ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/afe-advisor-llc/ πŸ‘‰ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dykdrones/# πŸ‘‰ X(Twitter): https://x.com/DronesDyk πŸ‘‰ Email: [email protected] the Podcast:πŸ‘‰ Apple Podcast:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/do-you-know-drones/id1479307112 πŸ‘‰ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DoYouKnowDrones#UASNexus #DroneIndustry #CommercialUAVExpo #USInvestment #DronePolicy #IndustrialBase #RegulatoryCapture #AmericanDrones

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