Forget the pizza delivery guy — investors are starting to bet on the pizza delivery drone.
In a recent report by Bloomberg News, venture capitalist Tim Draper notes that Americans who fear drones today might very well love them tomorrow if unmanned aerial vehicles begin fulfilling their commercial needs.
“Drones hold the promise of companies anticipating our every need and delivering without human involvement,” Mr. Draper, 55, wrote in an e-mail to Bloomberg News. “Everything from pizza delivery to personal shopping can be handled by drones.”
Investors have “poured” $40.9 million into drone startups in the first nine months of this year, and sales of civilian unmanned aerial vehicles is estimated to reach $8.2 billion within the decade, Bloomberg News reported. Stats like that are what drive venture capitalists like Mr. Draper to make pizza predictions with confidence.
“I see a bright future for non-military applications [for drones],” said Andy Wheeler, a partner at Google Ventures, also told Bloomberg News. If investors can navigate federal and state regulations, and ease consumers’ privacy concerns, he might be right.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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