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Walmart Planning to Use a Drone Company for Deliveries

By Kanika Gupta | Update Date: Oct 28, 2015 04:54 PM EDT

The largest retailer in the world is working to collaborate with the biggest manufacturer of drones to use it for delivery purposes. On Monday, Walmart released a statement that they have filed the paperwork with Federal Aviation Administration to test the drones outside for their deliveries. The device will be manufactured by China's SZ DJI Technology Co. In a report by Reuters, the retailers said that they would first like to research the delivery of goods at the Walmart facilities as well as the customer's homes.

Even though the world knows Walmart, DJI is a relatively new company that has just recently forayed into the big league and is little known outside of drone community. The company has been valued at $8 Billion as per the venture funding in May and currently control 70% of the market share for the consumer based drone market. DJI spokesman Michael Perry said in a statement to Forbes, "We are very excited to see Walmart exploring this space. Our uniquely high-performance, easy-to-use and affordable aerial technology continues to make DJI the leading choice for businesses and consumers that want to develop innovative unmanned aerial applications" as reported by Forbes

Even though the two companies did not officially partner with one another, Walmart used DJI drones which opens up an opportunity for the Shenzhen based company to enter a B2B model after exploring and leading the consumers and small businesses who use their drones for personal or video purposes. DJI insider sources reveal that the company does not plan to venture into delivery UAV development as of now. However, they did acknowledge Walmart's use of its drones as a unique opportunity in the near future. Even though FAA has prohibited the use of UAVs for commercial use, companies can apply individually and look into exemptions, reported WSJ.

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