Intel’s Shooting Star Drones
In 1968 Gordon E. Moore and Robert Noyce founded a little company in Mountain View, California. They used an anagram for the phrase Integrated Electronics to name their company, Intel. Their original purpose was to design logic circuits for computers. Since then they have moved their headquarters to Santa Clara, California and grown to be one of the largest computer processor companies ever. But they don’t stop at just creating computer processors. According to their website, “You may know us for our processors. But we do so much more. Intel invents at the boundaries of technology to make amazing experiences possible for business and society, and for every person on earth.”
One of these amazing experiences Intel has become known for is their drones. Perhaps their most famous drone is the Shooting Star drone. Stories have been made that tell of hordes of drones made to work as spies and take over governments. Intel’s Shooting Star is a drone that flies with in a swarm, but to delight rather than create fear. These drone swarms have been designed to preform fantastical aerial shows.
The drone is a relatively simple, light weight drone with four top mounted rotors. What makes it unique is the LED lights on it and it’s programing chip. The LEDs can be programed to display more than 4 billion color combinations. The drone can be flown remotely through it’s processor. It can fly in it’s own unique flight pattern, while still in tandem with many other drones. We’re not talking about synchronizing with a few drones, but upwards of hundreds of drones.
When Intel combines these hundreds of LED soaring drones and accompanying music, they wow audiences with futuristic air shows. They first made world wide waves with the drone show they put on at the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. At this show they broke their first world record by simultaneously flying 1,218 drones. Later that year they once again set a new world record at their 50th Anniversary celebration in Folsom, California. At this show they had 2,018 drones soaring through the sky.
Intel has since been contracted to dazzle with their Shooting Star drones for many venues. The 2017 Super Bowl Halftime show featured an incredible performance by Lady Gaga. During one segment of her show, 300 drones arose behind her to spell out “One Love”, followed of course by an ad spot for Pepsi with the Pepsi logo. Intel has also been awarded a contract with both Disney and Universal Studios. For Disney they created a 300 drone holiday show. For Universal, they found a way to bring the world of Harry Potter to life using the drones to represent Dementors, Patronuses, and other magical delights. Intel even had the opportunity to work with the US military to put on a 500 drone spectacle for Independence Day.
Anil Nanduri, vice president and general manager of Intel’s drone division, said of their aerial shows, “Our team constantly looks for opportunities to push the boundaries of innovation and deliver stunning entertainment experiences with our drone technology.” They certainly seem to have mastered this feat. Not only are they amazing audiences, but they are inspiring countless other engineers to push the boundaries of imagination and technology. A legacy that surely Gordon E. Moore and Robert Noyce (before his death) are quite proud of.
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