The Shawn Ryan Show

#258 Adam Bry - Why China Fears Skydio’s Rise in AI Drone Technology

59 snips
Dec 1, 2025
Adam Bry, Co-founder and CEO of Skydio, is an aerospace engineer and former Google X team member. He discusses the innovative R10 indoor tactical drone and Skydio's mission to revolutionize autonomous flight. Bry highlights success stories of Skydio's drones in public safety, revealing lives saved during police missions. He addresses privacy concerns while advocating for American leadership in drone technology, emphasizing the risks of foreign-controlled platforms and the importance of ethical AI in defense applications.
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INSIGHT

Robots Replace Risky Human Entry

  • Skydio built the R10 to keep people out of dangerous indoor situations by providing perfect situational awareness.
  • Adam Bry summarizes the company mantra as “send the robot, not the person.”
ADVICE

Scale By Increasing Autonomy

  • Use autonomy so one operator can manage many drones instead of needing expert pilots for each craft.
  • Adam Bry recommends increasing AI autonomy to scale drones to dozens per operator.
ANECDOTE

Bullet‑Scarred X10 Saved An Officer's Life

  • Shawn and Adam present an X10 that was shot while serving a homicide warrant but completed its mission.
  • Adam says it's better that the drone got shot than a person on that mission.
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