from Hacker News

A Silicon Valley for Drones, in North Dakota

by kloncks on 12/25/15, 1:40 PM with 30 comments

• by jmspring on 12/26/15, 1:18 AM

  I think a serious benefit ND has, aside from the established reputation and money put in is space. I can't really think of somewhere in Silicon Valley (or near by) that has the lack of population, lack of airspace traffic, and lack of local / state / federal ordinances that would allow this degree of freedom.

  Silicon Valley has it's strengths, but it can't be ground zero for everything.

  Honestly, if the NUMI plant wasn't in Fremont, I could see the majority of Tesla being not in the bay area (one could argue the battery plant in NV is such a shift).

• by rebootthesystem on 12/26/15, 5:42 PM

  Stupid behavior like this is the reason for which drones will find progressively more regulation and resistance:

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmD3rXUR1Tw

  The supply of idiots seems limitless.

• by protomyth on 12/26/15, 12:45 AM

  The aviation school at Grand Forks, ND is well known and the article is not kidding about the number of countries it attracts. It was a natural fit to move into drone piloting.

• by modfodder on 12/26/15, 2:23 AM

  Maybe Stillwater, OK with the first UAS graduate program will vie for that title.

  https://unmanned.okstate.edu

• by wtvanhest on 12/26/15, 1:44 AM

  Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach Florida seems far more likely. http://daytonabeach.erau.edu/

  Also tons of near by land and open ocean, as well as NASA and government contracting engineers already co-located and a bunch of other great universities nearby or with satellite campuses in and around Orlando / Daytona.

  Being able to fly 365 days a year helps too.

  Realistically, the Pacific Ocean and insanely high concentration of engineers in sv seems like the most likely place for long-term drone innovation.

• by jokoon on 12/26/15, 11:03 AM

  Weren't quadcopters formerly developed by boston dynamics ?

  Article is behind paywall.