Intel Invests £39m In Chinese Drone Maker Yuneec

Intel has invested $60m (£38.74m) in leading Chinese drone manufacturer Yuneec as the chip giant looks to push forward the deployment of such aircraft in a range of everyday uses.

Shangahi-based Yuneec, which was formed in 1999 in Hong Kong, currently makes drones for consumers and industrial users, as well as manned electric aircraft, including the top of the line Tornado H920 drone (pictured below).

Connected

Going forward, Intel and Yuneec will work together to develop future products, although no specific industrie or areas of interest were mentioned.

“At Intel we believe in a smart and connected world. And one of the best ways to bring that smart and connected world to everyone and everywhere has been drones,” said Intel CEO Brian Krzanich.

“We’ve got drones on our road map that are going to truly change the world and revolutionize the drone industry.”

Intel is the latest big technology firms to invest in drones.

Facebook recently revealed its Aquila drone project, which will see unmanned aircraft the size of a commercial airliner beaming the Internet to unconnected parts of the world from 90,000ft in the sky.

The most notable proponent of the technology so far has been Amazon, which is also set to launch its Prime Air drone delivery scheme within the next few years.

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