Supply chains plagued with inefficiencies, bottlenecks and manpower issues are getting a boost from AI-enabled drones. Today's AI drones in the enterprise provide new data capturing capabilities, autonomous functionality and improved logistical operations.

Unlike early unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which were manually flown by a person on the ground, the new AI drones can navigate and fly autonomously, detect and recognize objects, use advanced algorithms to maintain stability, interact with other technologies and automatically deliver packages and cargo.

Supply chain drone applications usually have a person monitoring activity behind the scenes. "Our pilots are like air traffic controllers," explained Beth Flippo, CEO and founder of Dexa, formerly Drone Express, an autonomous drone delivery company specializing in last-mile logistics for local retail and food. "They sit behind a screen, and they load the mission in of what it's supposed to do, and if the drone is having a problem, they can issue a command, like 'land,' 'go to a safe zone' or 'launch your parachute.'"

Otherwise, Dexa's delivery drones are fully autonomous. "These literally are pilotless vehicles, and eventually we won't even need the pilot to load the mission in," Flippo said. AI drones will then "truly become air traffic controllers," she said. "They will just be watching aircraft like air traffic today."

To prevent disruptions along the supply chain, autonomous AI drones are being used remotely to inspect bridges and power lines. "In autonomous inspections, AI becomes the operator," said Alden Jones, vice president of product management at drone maker Skydio. "The drone understands its surroundings, plans safe paths and collects data from consistent angles with minimal operator input."

The collected data is processed by AI software "to detect early signs of failure, like corrosion or cracks, turning raw images into actionable insights," Jones explained. "Together, these steps enable a shift from reactive inspections to condition-based maintenance, where problems can be identified earlier and addressed before they lead to failures."