Illuminate Drones has come a long way since Jacob Howard founded it in 2021. The Springville, Utah-based tech entertainment company specializes in indoor and outdoor drone light show. They have brought their drone-based entertainment product to a global audience with numerous customers eager to try personalized drone shows. They are also on a very short list of companies in the US and globally offering indoor drone-based light shows. 

Founder and CEO, Jacob Howard, sat down with TechBuzz to discuss the founding and growth of Illuminate Drones. He explained, “It’s a system made in China for STEM purposes; we retrofitted it to make it work for commercial purposes… Now we are developing our own indoor drone system completely from the ground up,” said Howard.

Howard added, “Our system is the first one that has been able to adapt and fit to customer needs and our new system will be even better. Old systems required days of setup, ours takes minutes or even seconds.” The company positions itself as a leader in indoor drone entertainment, offering a unique alternative to traditional light shows and outdoor drone displays. To help in the process, the company has partnered with a drone manufacturer in Idaho that has been doing all the research and development for the manufacturing of the enhanced indoor drones.

Most of the people working with Illuminate are subcontractors worldwide. The company employs three to eight full-time staff and contractors, with plans to expand internationally.

Howard described how he connected with his colleagues, “In 2020, some of the guys and I quit full-time jobs to work on an online course with me. It was called ‘FPV unlocked.”’ FPV (first person view) drones are used for racing; the can go 100 miles per hour. Howard continued, “We created a course on how to build and fly FPV drones. It was the only course that ever existed back then.”

At the same time, Howard leveraged his ability to network with thousands of students that took his course. His team also attended events such as FPD Unlocked, and received sponsorship from big names including RaceDayQuads, GetFPV, and Emax. From there, they started their base of connections that set the foundation for Illuminate.

The company has recently signed a deal with UK-based outdoor system, Light Dynamix (a Lincoln, UK-based company focusing on Pixel light show drones for outdoor events), producing over 1,800 drones. In the last four to five months, they have seen significant interest from both the US and international markets, with a focus on reliable customer service compared to competitors. The demand for drone light shows is high, and the company is working to meet it by expanding its team and capabilities. 

Howard mentioned his team’s use of AI in the drone business. He stated that AI is not currently used in drone light shows, but uses it to some extent for design work, with tools like ChatGPT helping to create coordinate grids for drone shows. They eventually want to use AI for more complex designs, but for now, the focus is on making the design process more efficient. 

Illuminate Drones has performed alongside various high-profile clients, including One Republic, Jordan Sparks, and Dude Perfect. Additionally, they have extended their clientele to The Middle East, The UK, South America, Japan, and other areas of the world. They are finding that customers are eager to be able to offer indoor drone shows.

Financially, the company has seen significant revenue growth, with a 7x increase in the past year. Illuminate Drones has received $700,000 from an undisclosed private investor in order to finance further expansion.

Howard noted how they were trying to keep up with the demand for their high performance drones, “People were buying it faster than we could make it. So we were able to find someone who has also bought their own system, but willing to invest in it. At the beginning, Howard reported to have taken out a $30,000 line of credit and was able to pay it off within the first month. 

The company offers consumers a customizable experience for their drone displays, “For indoor, we basically custom design every single show, because we have to design it based on the space that we’re flying in.” Personalization of drone shows allow designers to maximize the space while fitting the needs of each consumer’s entertainment expectations. 

Illuminate Drones has leveraged their software as a solution to common obstacles such as weather, FAA-restrictions, and other potential problems by providing consumers indoor drone shows. Since they started services a few years back, they have continued to see exceeding growth in their product and interest worldwide.

To learn more about Illuminate Drones, click here.

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