DRONE ON How LayerDrone Became the World's Largest Standardized Drone Network
Dec 8, 2025
19:39
Alec Wilson, COO of Spexi, explains how LayerDrone became the world’s largest standardized drone imagery network, and why Spexi made the decision to spin LayerDrone out into a public-good, crypto-economic protocol. He goes on to share:
- his journey from helicopter pilot to building one of the most ambitious aerial data networks in the world,
- the regulatory evolution of drones in Canadian airspace,
- how LayerDrone standardizes imagery from thousands of pilots, and
- why spatial AI, world models, and next-gen robotics companies are hungry for ultra-high-resolution, frequently updated aerial data.
Discussed
- How to go from flying helicopters to co-founding a drone training company that certified 10,000+ pilots
- The founding vision behind LayerDrone as an open-source, crypto-economic protocol for standardized drone imagery
- Why Spexi spun out LayerDrone and their role as the founding core contributor
- How the network balances pilot agency with safety requirements and regulatory compliance
- The relationship between Spexi (demand) and LayerDrone (supply)
Timecodes
- (00:00) - LayerDrone: the World’s Largest Standardized Drone
- (00:20) - Alec Wilson: Helicopter Pilot to Drone COO
- (01:51) - Alec co-founds Coastal Drone
- (04:17) - LayerDrone's founding vision
- (06:37) - Spexi's relationship with LayerDrone
- (07:47) - LayerDrone standardizes and coordinates thousands of drones
- (09:57) - Why take the risk of creating LayerDrone?
- (16:32) - Innovation or Idiotic?
Hosted by Bryce Bladon | Edited by AJ Fillari | Sponsored by Spexi.com & LayerDrone.org