9 Reasons to Attend Commercial UAV Expo 2024

We know, we know, it’s hard to believe.

But it’s true—Commercial UAV Expo 2024 is less than two months away!

And this year’s a big one, with the conference celebrating its 10th year, which is practically a century in the fast-moving world of drone technology.

After the drone conference shakeup that happened during COVID, Commercial UAV Expo has emerged as the clear front runner in the world of drone events. These days, it’s one of the biggest, best U.S. commercial drone conferences you can find.

Every year we start getting excited around now because we know the conference is coming up.

In this post, we’re going to share all the reasons we’re excited for Commercial UAV Expo 2024. If you’re on the fence about attending, this post may help you make a decision. And if you already know you’re going, we hope this post will serve to get you pumped.

When and Where Is Commercial UAV Expo 2024?

As it has been for several years, the conference will be held at Caesars Forum in Las Vegas, NV. The dates this year are September 3 to 5.

Right now you can get early bird pricing for $300 off. This deal is good until July 19.

Learn more about attending, or keep reading for our nine reasons to attend.

9 Reasons to Attend Commercial UAV Expo 2024

Here are the reasons we’re getting excited for the conference this year.

1. Best-in-Class Technology

The exhibition hall is always one of the best parts of any tech-focused conference. And the hall at Commercial UAV Expo is a standout, because all the heavy hitters in the drone industry are there.

This year, the expo will feature over 300 exhibitors showcasing the latest in commercial UAS technology.

The Elios 3 in flight inside a trailer at Commercial UAV Expo 2022

And if this year is like the last few, you can even fly Flyability’s Elios 3 on the exhibition floor—because they bring in a trailer where they literally let you fly right at the booth. That’s pretty cool.

2. Vertical-Specific Drone Deep Dives

Want to learn more about a specific section of the drone industry? Or learn a little about a lot of different commercial drone applications?

Whether you want to go deep on one application or just get a lay of the land for how drones are being used in work, Commercial UAV Expo is a great place to learn.

The conference program this year will offer talks in five key drone verticals:

• Construction
• Drone Pilot Program
• Energy and Utilities
• Infrastructure and Transportation
• Policy

View the full 2024 conference program.

3. Innovative Hydrogen Track

In addition to the five core tracks above, this year there will again be a track put on by the HYSKY Society.

This event does cost extra. But it’s a really unique offering. The HYSKY Society Hydrogen Aviation Course brings together all pieces of the hydrogen aviation ecosystem: hydrogen production, hydrogen logistics, hydrogen infrastructure, hydrogen fuel cells, and engines, and hydrogen aircraft.

The course offers participants the opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge about the latest advancements, technologies, and applications in the field of hydrogen aviation, designed to provide a solid foundation for understanding the principles, challenges, and opportunities associated with hydrogen-powered aircraft.

Learn more about the HYSKY Course.

4. The Keynotes

Commercial UAV Expo 2024 brings in top talent to speak every year, and this year’s shaping up to be no different.

Keynotes are a great opportunity to get personal perspectives from the top thought leaders, visionaries, and innovators in commercial drones operations.

Hear from industry experts about where the drone industry is headed from a regulatory perspective, how AI is impacting drone operations right now, and more.

5. Special Workshops and Events

Every year, Commercial UAV Expo puts on special events in addition to the main lineup of talks and panels.

Here are this year’s top workshops and events:

• Photogrammetric Mapping with UAS—led by ASPRS.
• LiDAR Mapping with UAS—led by ASPRS.
• From Air to Ground: Comprehensive Lidar Mapping Solutions—led by GeoCUE.
• Transforming UAVs into Real-World Mapping and Surveying Solutions—led by Trimble.
• From Drone Data to Survey Deliverable—led by Virtual Surveyor.

Learn more about special workshops and events at the 2024 conference.

6. Almost 4,000 Attendees Anticipated

Last year about 3,750 people attended Commercial UAV Expo. And this year the number may be even higher, if you can believe it.

Pulling people in from over 70 different countries, the event will truly be a global meeting place for all things drone-related.

7. The DRONERESPONDERS Public Safety Summit

Presented by AIRT, the Public Safety Summit is a co-located event that takes place over two days during Commercial UAV Expo.

Credit: DRONERESPONDERS

The Summit features programming designed to educate and prepare first responder UAS program managers and remote pilots at every experience level for public safety UAS operations.

If you work for a public safety agency and have been wanting to get up to speed with how to use drones, this event is a great opportunity to jump start your knowledge for using drones in your work.

Learn more about the Summit here.

8. Networking

Attendees at Commercial UAV Expo this year include people from top drone-related companies, government agencies, and some of the biggest companies in the world.

Where else can you rub shoulders with thousands of people who work with drones?

If you’re looking for work, to hire a drone pilot, to partner with another drone hardware or software company, or just to grow the list of contacts you have in the drone industry, Commercial UAV Expo is a great place to do it.

9. Live Outdoor Flying Demonstrations

Want to see the latest drone technology on display—not just in an exhibit hall, but actually in the air? Commercial UAV Expo’s live demos are the place to do it.

Here’s what Commercial UAV Expo has to say about this year’s live demos:

Leading vendors will demonstrate a range of drone applications. Not only will airframe and sensor capabilities be showcased, but a sophisticated AV set up will allow users to view resulting data sets and processing solutions for the full end-to-end view of the technology. Drone experts will be on-hand to narrate live scenarios and field questions from the audience.

Here are the companies participating in the live demos this year:

• Autel Robotics
• Event 38 Unmanned Systems
• Frontier Precision Unmanned
• ideaForge
• Skyfish

Learn more about this year’s live demos.

Want to Attend Commercial UAV Expo 2024?

Take advantage of early bird pricing, which gets you $300 off from now until July 19. Register here.

Hope to see you there!