Drones are increasingly being used in diverse industries, exhibiting their usefulness in terms of enhanced efficiency and transparency. From its humble beginnings of usage restricted only to reconnaissance, it is now being used for a wide range of applications. Drones are finding applications in real estate/infrastructure, agriculture, media & entertainment, industrial, law enforcement, and other industries. As a result, the global drone services market size is predicted to become worth USD 67.43 billion by 2026, exhibiting a CAGR of more than 40 per cent during the period. The rising demand for commercial drones in agricultural applications such as crop rotation, crop protection, and organic farming is expected to accelerate the drone services market growth.

One of the largest growing areas for drone technology is aerial surveying and mapping. What once required either on foot expeditions or manned aircraft to achieve can now be done with unmanned aerial vehicles. Being the fastest-growing drone market, India is expected to become the world's third-largest UAV technology market by 2024. However, while drones have many possible functionalities, the true potential of drone technology is yet to be fully explored across industries, leveraging emerging technologies like AI, AR/VR, IoT and 3D modeling. There is a huge scope and a lot of room for innovation and development as tastes and preferences change and get more diversified. In addition, as the market evolves, focus also need to be directed towards up-skilling the existing human resource as that is the way forward for increased adoption.

A host of service providers have emerged in this segment looking to leverage the early mover's advantage. In this issue, we present to you a list of 10 Most Promising Drone Service Providers that have managed to stay ahead of the curve and are going from strength to strength in meeting the varied needs of the customers.

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