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[Shenzhen (China) 8 de Reuters]- Drone (Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) The world’s largest Chinese DJI technology has become a force that has driven almost all highly successful competitors in the US business out of the market in the last 10 years. he turned.
However, in recent months there has been an internal struggle in the North American business, with a series of layoffs and retirements. Interviews with more than 20 current and former employees were revealed.
DJI’s dominant position is likely to be affected by the US government’s embargo on Chinese companies, as well as the departure of key executives and the transfer of some to rivals. It used to be hard to think.
About a third of the more than 200 teams in North America left their offices in Palo Alto, California, Burbank and New York last year due to layoffs or retirements, according to three current and former employees.
In February this year, the head of the research and development (R&D) department retired at America’s flagship research center in Palo Alto, and DJI also laid off the remaining 10 people in the department, according to four people. interviewed.
DJI explained that it was a difficult decision to downsize Palo Alto’s workforce, reflecting “changing needs.” “We are grateful for the contributions of affected employees and will continue to deliver on our promises to our customers and partners.”
“While competitors make misleading claims, our corporate customers understand that DJI offers strong data security. Anonymous sources are gossip, DJI is determined to continue its service in the North American market.”
DJI, which has been a symbol of China’s technological innovation since its founding in 2006, is one of dozens of companies amid the trade and diplomatic friction between the United States and China.
Based on current and former employees and competitors, DJI’s brand power, technical know-how, productivity, and sales force will see the company lose its championship position in the US and global non-military drone markets in the near future. . .
However, the addition of DJI by the US Department of Commerce to the de facto embargo list “Entity List” in December last year and the closure of the California R&D department could decrease its capacity. to serve US customers.
The Commerce Department’s actions were implemented on the suspicion that DJI was enabling “cutting edge monitoring” in the United States, prohibiting the company from buying and using American technology and spare parts.
In December of the same year, DJI’s American Public Safety Officer Romeo Dasha retired. He has played a pivotal role in creating companies that provide drone technology to US government ministries and agencies.Former NASA executive and drone industry mogul Darshire now works for the Swiss company Oterion. , which competes with DJI.
“It was not an easy decision to leave the industry leader, which sets it apart from all other companies,” said Darshire. However, he said, “the infighting is interfering with the original purpose and the situation got worse in 2020. It was very disappointing that a lot of human resources were lost,” he said.
Darshire and several other employees have described DJI’s infighting as the “Game of Thrones,” comparing it to the television drama “Game of Thrones,” which describes the struggle for power.
DJI, a private company, has not disclosed its sales. The Pentagon estimates that the US non-military drone market last year was worth $ 4.2 billion. According to drone consultants and analysts, DJI has a 90% share of the consumer market and more than 70% of the industrial market in the North American market.
According to drone analyst researcher David Benowitz, DJI’s listing in the US Department of Commerce could affect mobile apps, web servers, some batteries, and image-related products … However, DJI said in December last year that it would not affect US customers who buy or use its products.
However, before the Commerce Department’s action, DJI took another hit from the US government.The US Interior Ministry declared in October last year that it would only buy drones from Pentagon-approved companies. In August last year, the Pentagon approved the delivery of drones to the US federal government, limited to a total of five companies, four from the United States and one from France.
This could reduce DJI’s share of the North American market, Benowitz said. The US federal government’s purchases of DJI’s business are relatively small, but could have a “chilling effect” as a result of fears that other customers will take even more stringent measures in the future.
“There are so many business opportunities in the market that it is difficult for one company to dominate the market,” said Benowitz.
However, while DJI’s competitors grew last year due to policy support and security concerns over DJI, he said, they are still relatively weak.
One of them, Adam Bry, chief executive of Skydio, told Reuters: “DJI is making good hardware, but we are still in the early days of the market. Finally reached. It is a very primitive stage compared to what it should be.” .
(David Kirton reporter)
