The InDro Evolution, Part One: Drones

The InDro Evolution, Part One: Drones

Aug 6, 2026 | InDro News, Industry News, Innovation, Philip Reece, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

It’s been quite a journey.

Since the founding of InDro Robotics by Philip Reece back in 2014, the company has followed a steady trajectory of innovation and growth, marked by multiple milestones and a number of industry “firsts.” We thought, 12 years on, it was worth looking back on that path.

The company was initially formed after CEO Reece saw an opportunity. At the time, he owned Salt Spring Air, a small floatplane company later acquired by the Harbour Air Group. A regular client would hire one of his aircraft annually for aerial data acquisition – but this year declined, saying he was going to use a drone instead. Reece began researching drone technology and quickly identified this would be a growth market where R&D could play a role – both in enabling new technologies and new use-case scenarios. 

“The economic benefits of a UAS versus traditional aircraft were immediately apparent,” he recalls. “And it was also clear there were multiple use-cases where a drone would be able to do things a crewed aircraft could not.”

And so InDro – short for Industrial Drones – was born. It was, initially, a startup operation based out of Salt Spring Island. Reece, along with a few dedicated staff, began building and testing drones (and also some uncrewed surface vehicles for aquatic work). Reece, a serial entrepreneur, had a knack for identifying novel use-cases.

“In 2014, in our very first year, we demonstrated that an Automated External Defibrillator could be delivered by drone, potentially saving lives,” he says. 

For InDro, that trial marked the beginning of a strong and steady voyage.

Above: Advanced urban wind tunnel research drone on a mission with the NRC. Below: A 2014 video (which now shows its age) where InDro demonstrated the potential for AED delivery by drone. Image: InDro Founder/CEO Philip Reece at Area X.O.

Philip Reece Area X.O

PROGRESS, COLLABORATION, MILESTONES

 

In those early days, regulators were exceedingly cautious, even fearful, of this new technology. There was legitimate concern a drone might collide with another aircraft, or cause injury to persons or property on the ground. You couldn’t simply put a drone up in the air regardless of the purpose – you needed a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) for each and every flight. It was a time-consuming process.

But Reece, a licensed pilot himself, could see the rationale and began building trust with contacts at Transport Canada. InDro also started working with a broad selection of First Responders – fire, police, Search & Rescue and more – training them how to safely use these new tools. At one of the biggest downtown fires in Victoria’s history, the fire department deployed an InDro-supplied drone with a FLIR thermal camera. It allowed the department to see through thick smoke to more strategically direct suppression efforts.

While Visual Line of Sight flights (with an SFOC) could accomplish many tasks, Reece and others in the industry knew that BVLOS flights would open up an entire new world of use-cases. In 2016, in coordination with Transport Canada and First Responders, InDro flew a BVLOS mission to assist with a major forest fire. That was within restricted airspace and a special case. But the company did fly Canada’s first BVLOS mission outside of a test range in 2017.

We also flew regularly from a moving vehicle to document the beauty and diversity of this country during an 11,000 km overland trip through Canada in the Explorer 150 project – a partnership with Maclean’s magazine, Duracell and Rogers, and one of many high-profile events to mark Canada’s 150th birthday. We even captured video of polar and grizzly bears during that trip.

Below: Two members of the Explorer 150 team

Duracell Explorer 150

OTHER FIRSTS

 

There are many. Highlights include:

  • The first “blanket” SFOC for Canada-wide flights, and the first license granted by the Canadian Transportation Agency to use drones as a means of cargo delivery
  • The first flight in Canada using 5G for Command and Control (2021)
  • The first TC BVLOS delivery of simulated blood products between hospitals (2018) and the first delivery of pharmaceutical products (2019) with privacy and other approvals. Those trials, along with further research work transporting AEDs, proved that aerial delivery was faster than emergency ground transport

InDro rapidly developed a reputation not only as a serious player in this emerging industry, but a collaborative one. In 2018, Reece worked closely with regulators and Canada Post to arrange for a demonstration of drone technology and BVLOS flights from the-then Salt Spring Island headquarters. He invited multiple companies – including AVSS, ParaZero Technologies, Avidrone Aerospace, SkyX, DJI and Iris Automation (since acquired by uAvionix) to highlight their own solutions, all observed by Transport Canada and NAV CANADA officials, as well as senior Canada Post management. Those invitations made that event  about elevating the industry, not InDro.

It was that kind of work that garnered InDro Robotics and Reece the prestigious Organisational Award from Unmanned Systems Canada (now the Aerial Evolution Association of Canada) in 2020. The award recognises a company that has made an outstanding contributions to the industry-at-large.

Below: Two use-cases we’re particularly proud of: During the peak of the COVID pandemic, InDro flew BVLOS flights for an island-based First Nations community, shuttling COVID test kits and swabs needing analysis back and forth to the mainland. We earlier flew Canada’s first BVLOS deliveries of prescription medications in a fully sanctioned trial

INDRO’S TAKE

Other firsts include working with telecoms like Rogers to carry out Canada’s first flight over 5G. We developed InDro Pilot, then InDro Controller, as a UI for command and control. We’ve collaborated with Federal departments like the National Research Council, detected landmines in partnership with Montreal’s CHAAC technologies for the Department of National Defence, and built multiple generations of R&D drones that run on the open-source ROS2. We remain the key technology provider for the ongoing Drone Detection System at YOW, which has gathered years worth of data shared with Transport Canada, NAV CANADA, the RCMP and other airport authorities. (The system was even used to ensure the airspace was free of drones for former US President Joe Biden’s visit to Ottawa.)

We’ve also helped incubate other companies, including Cypher Robotics, which has a tethered drone attached to an autonomous mobile robot that counts warehouse inventory with 99-plus per cent accuracy. Plus many projects for international clients where we are bound by NDA.

This story could be much longer – there’s a lot we’ve skipped, including the launch of the FLYY online drone training portal – but you get the drift: InDro has continuously pushed the envelope with drone technology and use-cases, collaborating whenever possible while developing custom RPAS solutions for global clients.

“In retrospect, I’m incredibly grateful that client decided to not hire a Salt Spring Air floatplane back in 2014,” says Reece. “That was where all this started, and I could not have envisioned back then how this path would unfold. Our engineering staff has grown immensely since the early days, and we’re now innovating with long-range, hybrid aircraft suitable for deliveries and reconnaissance in Arctic conditions.”

And one more very important thing before we wrap:

“None of this would have been possible without a dedicated engineering team and the support from multiple Federal and provincial programs that believed in us. As a company we are grateful for that trust – and look forward to what’s next.”

Part II of this series is coming soon: InDro and ground robotics.

InDro’s hybrid drone and ground robot: Long-range, all-weather solutions

InDro’s hybrid drone and ground robot: Long-range, all-weather solutions

Jul 29, 2026 | Defence, Drone Delivery, InDro Autonomy, InDro News, Innovation, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

Picture this: A medical crisis in a remote or isolated community. Specifically, a patient needs a critical medication quickly.

There’s no pharmacy in the small town, nor is there an airstrip. A medical helicopter is unavailable. But without this medication, the patient might die. This community does have a road leading to the wider world (not all do), but it’s an eight-hour drive to the nearest city that has the required drug – then another eight hours back.

The obvious solution, to those in this field, is a drone. But here, too, there are problems. The range is beyond the reach of most RPAS. And the weather at both ends is inhospitable to most drones; high winds and sub-zero temperatures.

This is a problem – and a big one.

That’s why InDro has been working on a solution. We’re not quite ready to take the wraps off it yet, which is why you’re looking at a render in the image above. (The render, in fact, doesn’t even look close to what we’re working on – it’s a completely different body design.)

But what we’re working on is very real. And we will give you some details.

Below: The isolated community of Akulivik in Nunavik, northern Quebec. Getting critical supplies to remote communities can be challenging, particularly in hostile weather. Image by Couch, licensed under Creative Commons Share Alike 3.0 Unported

Remote community

SOME (BUT NOT ALL) DETAILS

 

The RPAS we’re working with on, like the render that opened this story, is a catapult launch. In fact, we’re building the catapult right now. But that’s about the only thing in common with the image. The body shape is significantly different, and built for far greater efficiency and far harsher conditions. But the other key in this project is range.

Battery power alone won’t cut it; the energy density won’t sustain truly extended BVLOS flights. We considered fuel-only, but the ranges we’re aiming for would require significant fuel, noise and emissions. And so we’ve settled on an electric hybrid.

A small fuel-powered generator will keep the onboard batteries charged, extending our range and reducing the carbon footprint. This RPAS has been engineered to fly many hundreds of kilometres. The body is designed for carrying a heavy payload in even highly demanding weather scenarios. It can fly in sub-zero Arctic conditions, scorching deserts, and even handle the volatile winds in mountain ranges. The catapult launch also minimises the energy required for a traditional ground takeoff.

While there’s clearly demand for delivering critical supplies, the heavy-lift capacity means this drone can also carry an array of sensors (including, of course, a Detect-And-Avoid system). That puts it firmly in the dual-use category, whether for remote communities, industrial tasks or sovereignty/defence applications. We believe it will fill a crucial gap when it comes to long-range BVLOS, particularly in demanding conditions – and look forward to a complete unveil in the future.

 

NOT JUST AIR

 

We are also working on a rugged, long-range ground robot that can be tele-operated over long distances. The mechanics for drive-by-wire have already been installed and we’ve been testing this in a battery-only configuration at our Area X.O R&D headquarters.

Because we want to extend the range significantly, a lightweight, low-displacement generator vastly increases range while keeping the propulsion electric-only and minimising carbon footprint.

This particular ground robot is much larger than anything we’ve publicly revealed (though we have built some pretty big ground robots for high-profile technology clients). The greater size, rugged suspension, cargo capacity and long range mean it will be useful for a broad range of use-cases. Yes, it can deliver a significant quantity of supplies – whether to a community, wildfire crews, disaster zones or even front-line troops. It can handle exceedingly rugged terrain, meaning even if infrastructure is heavily damaged (or non-existent), it will reach its destination. It can even be configured to carry an injured human being out of a remote or dangerous location.

We call this new product Obsidian. The photo below was taken in early April of 2026, and significant work has taken place since then.

Obsidian Build April 2026

INDRO’S TAKE

 

Both of these hybrid projects represent significant advances in aerial and ground robotics for InDro. By significantly extending range and ruggedness, Obsidian and the forthcoming drone open up a far broader array of humanitarian and defence-related use-cases.

“Engineering is all about solving problems,” says InDro Founder and CEO Philip Reece. “We believe this truly efficient, long-range and heavy-lift drone will fill a critical void in getting important supplies to remote and isolated communities, gathering data over long distances and in inclement weather, and also find a role in defence and sovereignty applications. We are equally excited about the capabilities of the hybrid ground robot.”

We look forward to fully unveiling these remarkable products when complete. Stay tuned.

Meet the New InDro Axiom Humanoid-Style Research Robot

Meet the New InDro Axiom Humanoid-Style Research Robot

Jul 23, 2026 | InDro Axiom, InDro News, InDro Solutions, Industry News, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

We’ve released a new robot – and it’s unlike anything we’ve built before.

The new InDro Axiom is a budget-friendly and flexible platform for those doing Physical AI R&D involving humanoid-style robots with arms. It’s designed to make advanced robotics more accessible to researchers, academic institutions, and industry.

Created in response to growing demand for affordable humanoid development tools, Axiom provides many of the capabilities researchers require for manipulation, simulation, and autonomy development — without the cost or complexity associated with fully bipedal humanoid systems.

“We describe Axiom less as a robot and more as a research solution with exciting industrial implications,” says Luke Corbeth, InDro’s Head of R&D Sales. “It’s a budget humanoid — an adaptable, modular approach to Physical AI. It gives researchers a way to collect data, develop skills, and build toward autonomous deployment using one flexible system.”

Below: The human-height Axiom alongside Robotics Hardware Engineering Intern Justin Luo 

TELESCOPING TORSO

 

Those doing research with humanoids – and ultimately deploying them in the real world – need a platform with arms. And those arms might need to reach something high, low, or in-between. Axiom can handle them all.

Axiom features a unique form factor that includes a telescoping torso, caster-wheel base, dual shoulder-mounted robotic arms, and a top-mounted depth camera. Users can move the platform to wherever the research or work needs to take place. The adjustable torso enables Axiom to function across a wide range of environments – from tabletop tasks to higher interactions such as cabinets, shelves, or door handles. Customers can select their own robotic arms and end effectors. If you already have robotic arms, you can purchase a base model with depth camera for $4,000 US and integrate your own hardware.

Axiom is aimed at robotics researchers exploring Physical AI — the emerging field where artificial intelligence moves beyond software and into machines that carry out tasks in the physical world.

“Physical AI is what happens when you give an intelligent system the ability to perceive and act,” says Corbeth. “Instead of generating answers like an AI chatbot, the system learns to actually perform tasks in the real world.”

 

UPGRADES AVAILABLE

 

To maximize accessibility, Axiom can operate as a standalone development platform using a researcher’s existing computer workflow. For more advanced applications, it can be equipped with InDro Cortex for onboard compute and connectivity, along with InDro Controller for visualization, simulation, remote operation, and advanced autonomy development.

The platform expands to match your needs. Axiom can be integrated onto an Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) base, adding omnidirectional movement and creating a fully mobile manipulation research platform which could ultimately be deployable.

Corbeth says the timing for Axiom is perfect.

“Physical AI is one of the most exciting frontiers in robotics right now,” he says. “This isn’t science fiction anymore – it’s happening today in labs around the world. Axiom is another way InDro is helping enable that future.”

Below: Axiom’s adjustable torso means the robot swiftly be set to different heights

INDRO’S TAKE

 

Axiom grew from customer demand, and three units have already shipped. A typical system with two highly capable arms runs about $19,000 USD and, when equipped with InDro Cortex and InDro Controller, about $28,000 USD.

“Researchers have told us they want to work on humanoid-style development, but a $60,000 to $100,000 system simply isn’t realistic for many teams,” says Corbeth. “Axiom creates a much more accessible pathway.”

InDro Founder and CEO Philip Reece is pleased the company can offer such an affordable platform for research.

“Physical AI is already much more than a buzzword,” he says. “Axiom now allows academic and R&D companies to affordably develop algorithms and other innovations that will fully enable the next generation of humanoid-style robots.”

For more information about InDro Axiom, contact Luke Corbeth.

How InDro engineers robots for the real world

How InDro engineers robots for the real world

Jul 14, 2026 | Uncategorized

By Scott Simmie

 

We’ve all seen the videos.

Quadrupeds doing parkour. Humanoid robots dancing, throwing punches, or effortlessly picking up boxes.

It’s easy to assume those capabilities come straight out of the box. In reality, almost every successful deployment involves configuration, software development, sensor integration, testing and refinement.

So while all that kicking and dancing may look impressive, it leaves out a very critical part of the equation. Before a robot can do any of those things reliably, it has to be built, programmed, trained and – most importantly – tested in the environment where it’s actually going to work.

That’s the part most of those videos never show: Mud that behaves like glue. Loose gravel that jams up tracked platforms. Dust, rain, extreme temperatures and uneven terrain. Those are the things that determine whether a robot succeeds or fails.

At InDro Robotics, we build for the real world – every step of the way.

Above: Our new Prowler wheeled quadruped inspection robot gets put to the test at Ottawa’s Area X.O. Below: An earlier iteration of our Sentinel is tested in water of varying depths

Sentinel water DARTT

USE-CASE

 

At InDro, we don’t simply sell robots. We customise them for each and every customer.

During the initial “discovery” call, our Head of R&D Sales Luke Corbeth learns as much as possible about the client’s needs. Is the robot for indoor use only? Remote asset inspection (where it will undoubtedly be exposed to inclement weather)? Does it need to climb stairs, navigate rough terrain, identify objects?

That first conversation isn’t about choosing a robot; it’s about understanding the problem. Once Corbeth has a good sense of use-case, he can start recommending platforms and parts suitable for the job. If the robot is going to be outdoors, for example, he’ll suggest platforms and components that have a solid Ingress Protection (IP) rating.

The general baseline for outdoor robots is IP65, meaning they’re capable of handling light rain, irrigation sprays, dust etc. But a more demanding environment could easily call for a higher IP rating to ensure it can handle mud, temporary submersion etc. Now we’re into IP67+ territory.

Sensors are integral to every deployment. Depending on the application, a robot might carry anything from a simple RGB camera to LiDAR, depth cameras, thermal imaging, GNSS/INS modules or PTZ systems. These feed data into InDro Cortex, where onboard AI fuses the information, giving the client the complete picture via our InDro Controller user interface.

 

TESTING, TESTING, 1,2,3

 

Simulations are an important first step. They let us recreate weather conditions, terrain and mission scenarios. But simulations only go so far. Eventually, every robot has to prove itself in the real world.

We ensure they’re ready by putting them through their paces at Area X.O’s Drone and Advanced Robotics Training and Testing zone, or DARTT. It’s a series of testbeds that include sand, gravel, uneven terrain, water, an adjustable incline ramp and more. All of these have been built to the demanding requirements of the US-based National Institute of Standards and Training (NIST). To the best of our knowledge, it’s the only such facility in Canada.

But we don’t stop there. If the client has particularly demanding terrain or surfaces, we test the robot at their location when possible. And in those cases where we can’t, if there’s an issue we will troubleshoot remotely as a first step. In the rare event where a robot is not operating as planned in the field, we will either address the issue back at our R&D headquarters or dispatch a field engineer to the site.

And yes, despite all that, real-world testing occasionally produces unexpected results. In one deployment, deep mud inside a mine proved too much for a quadruped platform. It simply became stuck. Rather than treating that as failure, we treated it as engineering data – returning to the drawing board to improve the solution.

Below: Testing Sentinel onsite in real-world conditions in Ottawa

Sentinel enclosure Ottawa Hydro

INDRO’S TAKE

 

We take building robots very seriously – and our top priority is ensuring that the robots we build meet the needs of our clients.

“Reliability isn’t something you add at the end,” says Founder and CEO Philip Reece. “It’s built into every stage of development – from that initial discovery call through platform selection and testing through to deployment. That’s one reason why so many of our customers come back when they’re ready for their next robot.”

Anyone can demonstrate a robot for five minutes. The real challenge is making sure it performs every day, in conditions that are rarely ideal. To set up a no-pressure discovery call, contact Luke Corbeth here.

ChatGPT gives InDro Robotics high marks for the future

ChatGPT gives InDro Robotics high marks for the future

Jul 2, 2026 | AI, Defence, InDro Controller, InDro Cortex, InDro News, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

Since the founding of InDro Robotics in 2014, we’ve always tried to stay ahead of the curve. And that applies to both technology and use-cases.

Initially the company was focussed on building drones and deploying them for new use-cases. In fact the word “InDro” stands for Industrial Drones. And back in that first year, long before others tried, we demonstrated that drones could be used to deliver life-saving Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs). We pushed on from there, capturing an impressive number of “firsts” in Canada. These include:

  • First Beyond Visual Line of Sight drone flight authorized by Transport Canada
  • First blanket BVLOS Special Flight Operations Certificate in Canada
  • First company to be licensed by the Canadian Transportation Agency to carry cargo by drones (and the first pharmaceutical delivery in Canada by drone)

Then we started broadening our horizons, branching into the Uncrewed Ground Vehicles space. With a large engineering team at our R&D headquarters at Invest Ottawa‘s Area X.O., we are now a major supplier of custom robots and other solutions to industry, academia and defence. That’s also where we developed our new and groundbreaking Cortex and Controller – a powerful hardware and software combination that makes integrating robots and carrying out complex remotely tele-operated missions a snap.

In addition, we’ve been the technology incubator for other companies, including the highly successful Cypher Robotics, which uses a combination of an autonomous mobile robot with a tethered drone to carry out automated inventory counts in massive warehouses. And we recently transformed a stock humanoid robot so that a person can operate it using VR goggles and handsets – meaning it can be rapidly trained to carry out complex tasks. We’ve also built custom robots for some of the biggest technology firms on the planet.

Why all this background? Because, according to questions we put to a Large Language Model AI, it ideally positions us for the future.

Below: A fleet of robots enabled with InDro Cortex, InDro Controller, plus additional sensors

WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD?

 

We don’t have a crystal ball, but we did consult the paid version of OpenAI’s ChatGPT for its thoughts. Our prompt was: “What are likely to be the highest growth industries over the next 10 years?” Its answer stated AI and robotics are “likely to be the defining technology of the next decade.” It then went into bullets of specific areas within the sector. InDro has deep expertise in five of the seven areas ChatGPT identified:

  • AI software and agents
  • Industrial robotics
  • Humanoid robots
  • Autonomous vehicles
  • Autonomous drones
  • Healthcare AI
  • AI chips and infrastructure

You could arguably add our proprietary new Cortex brain-box to the sixth category, as it utilises powerful AI chipsets along with PCBs we’ve developed to maximise the utility of AI with robots and drones. ChatGPT also pointed out that “The distinction between drones, ground robots, marine robots, and humanoids is becoming less important—they’re increasingly viewed as different embodiments of AI-enabled robotics.”

 

DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

 

This is the second high-growth field AI identified over the next decade. And with a shifting geopolitical world, it’s not a surprise. Canada has made this a huge priority with its Defence Industrial Strategy. NATO and many members have announced similar spending increases and new priorities that focus on technical solutions.

The DIS commits more than half a trillion dollars between now and 2035 to bolster defence and sovereignty capabilities. While some of this money will go to infrastructure and armaments, a considerable amount is devoted to private sector companies that can come up with new and innovative dual purpose technologies. Once again, InDro Robotics (along with sister company Bravo Zulu (which specialises in drone countermeasures), have deep expertise in five of the seven areas identified:

  • Autonomous systems
  • Counter-drone technology
  • Electronic warfare
  • Space-based surveillance
  • AI-enabled ISR
  • Unmanned ground vehicles
  • Cybersecurity

InDro has already completed multiple projects for DND, including partnering with Montreal’s CHAAC Technologies on an autonomous neural network that uses our drones and machine vision to automatically detect and map the PFM-1 landmine. Our ground robots are then autonomously dispatched for ground-truth verification (and could be modified to detonate these devices).

We also have a couple of other projects under wraps, but one involves the world’s longest range hybrid-electric land vehicle – capable of 7,000km on a single tank of diesel. (You’ll be hearing more about this before long.)

Below: ChatGPT gives InDro a 9/10 for its defence technology capabilities

ChatGPT InDro Defence

CHATGPT’S TAKE

 

At this point, we usually head to Philip for a quote. But we thought we’d ask ChatGPT how ready it believes InDro is for the future. In fact, we asked it to give us a score. Our prompt was: “How do you feel InDro is positioned for the first two areas you identified?”

“I think InDro is unusually well positioned in both AI/robotics and defense technology,” it replied. “That doesn’t mean success is guaranteed—execution, capital, partnerships, and market timing all matter—but strategically the company appears to be aligned with where the market is heading,” it says. It scores us a 9.5/10 on the AI/robotics front, for the following reasons:

“This is where I think InDro has the strongest positioning. Many robotics companies are essentially systems integrators—they buy a robot from one company, sensors from another, and write custom software. What makes InDro different is that it appears to be evolving toward becoming a robotics platform company. From what I’ve seen publicly, the key assets include:

  • Cortex as a platform-agnostic robotics compute and sensor integration module
  • Controller as a unified operator interface
  • An autonomy software stack
  • Deep expertise in sensor fusion
  • Teleoperation over 5G
  • Experience across aerial and ground robots
  • Custom engineering capabilities

“The platform-agnostic approach is particularly important. Cortex is designed to work with many different robotic platforms rather than locking customers into a single robot, which substantially expands the addressable market.”

And on Defence Technology? Here, we get a 9/10:

“One thing I particularly like is that InDro has not positioned itself as a traditional weapons company. Instead it develops technologies with both commercial and defense applications:

  • Inspection
  • Logistics
  • Monitoring
  • Teleoperation
  • Autonomy
  • AI
  • Remote sensing

“Those same technologies are directly applicable to defence use-cases. Canada’s new Defence Industrial Strategy explicitly emphasizes autonomous platforms, AI, sensors, and dual-use technologies, and InDro has publicly highlighted how Cortex can enable autonomous or tele-operated military vehicles.”

We’ve always thought we were positioning ourselves for the future. It’s nice to have a respected external opinion validate that.