Bill Irby is CEO of AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc., a global technology innovator focused on enhancing situational awareness. The company provides customer-centric, advanced robotics solutions, beginning with autonomous drones that are high-value and solve mission-critical problems.  Founded in 2010, AgEagle was originally formed to pioneer proprietary, professional-grade, fixed-winged drones and aerial imagery for the agriculture industry.  Today, AgEagle is a leading provider of full stack drone solutions for customers worldwide in the energy, construction, agriculture, and government verticals.

Their eBee drone is autonomous, safe, ultra-light and easy to use. They are the first UAVs to be approved by the FAA for Operations Over People and Operations Over Moving Vehicles in the U.S.  They are also the first drone to receive the European Union Aviation Safety Agency Design Verification for BVLOS and Operations Over People.  The drones have performed over one million flights globally and are lightweight, hand-launched, and able to operate vast distances Beyond-Visual-Line-of-Sight (BVLOS).

Bill is a United States Naval Academy alum with more than 25 years of senior management experience in uncrewed air and maritime systems, actuation hardware, ISR systems, and communication systems.

He served as a Vice President at Northrop Grumman, one of the world’s largest weapons manufacturers and military technology providers, generating $30 billion annually. More recently, he was President of MTI and Steel Partners Holdings, a diversified global holding company with operations in industrial products, energy, defense, supply chain management and logistics.

Bill is also an active Board member of Ghost Robotics and Chairman of the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International.  He also served as President of VBAT after Shield AI’s acquisition and L3 Harris.  Bill holds a Master’s degree in Technical Management from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the United States Naval Academy.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Bill talks about AgEagle’s evolution into a full-stack drone company, and he discusses recent deals that demonstrate the company’s success in the marketplace.