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1. Kamil Ali
Picker
MBA & MS Computer Science, AI
Kimberly Te
Designer
MS Computer Science, AI & HCI
Ariel Leong
Hustler
MS Computer Science, AI
Lydia Chan
Hacker
BS Computer Science, AI
Frank Moss
Mentor
Day 1: Provider for autonomous drone
delivery for food (restaurants and
grocery stores)
105 Interviews
Drova
Now: Fleet management software
for autonomous drone delivery
4. Channels
Businesses - through
warm intros and
contracts; consumers -
through mobile app and
marketing (ex. user
referrals, social media
ads, news)
Customer Segments
Consumers
desiring fast delivery and
reliable/low-touch option
Retail Food/Grocery
Businesses
looking for further reach
and discovery + lower
delivery costs and more
customer satisfaction /
demand
Revenue Stream
Service fee charged per delivery to businesses and customers,
revenue sharing with Drova Partners for profits made through
deliveries completed via their drones
Value Propositions
Problem:
Current delivery services
(human drivers) are slow
and expensive with
limited reach
Need:
Businesses and end
customers are pushing
for inexpensive and
faster delivery with
larger reach
Key Resources
Scalable drone
infrastructure via
franchisees,
public consumer app, route
optimization and
autonomous drone
flight software
Key Activities
Regular ordering of retail
products by consumers
Businesses packaging and
loading items for drone
delivery
Drova Partners locating
drones in demand areas to
service deliveries
Key Partners
Key Partners:
Food/Grocery Retailers
Drova Partners
(Franchisees)
Key Suppliers:
Drone manufacturers
Cost Structure
Fixed cost for starting initial Drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas (will eventually recoup due to franchisee model),
server costs for developing software models and hosting apps and
services, marketing and sales expenditure
1
Customer Relationships
Established SLAs with
initial business customers
before expanding + two-
way feedback/support
channels with early
customers, recurring deals
and referral rewards for
consumers / strong focus
on consumer support
Original Business Model Canvas
5. Channels
Businesses - through
warm intros and
contracts; consumers -
through mobile app and
marketing (ex. user
referrals, social media
ads, news)
Customer Segments
Consumers
desiring fast delivery and
reliable/low-touch option
Retail Food/Grocery
Businesses
looking for further reach
and discovery + lower
delivery costs and more
customer satisfaction /
demand
Revenue Stream
Service fee charged per delivery to businesses and customers,
revenue sharing with Drova Partners for profits made through
deliveries completed via their drones
Value Propositions
Problem:
Current delivery
services (human
drivers) are slow and
expensive with
limited reach
Need:
Businesses and end
customers are
pushing for faster and
inexpensive delivery
with larger reach
Key Resources
Scalable drone
infrastructure via
franchisees,
public consumer app, route
optimization and
autonomous drone
flight software
Key Activities
Regular ordering of retail
products by consumers
Businesses packaging and
loading items for drone
delivery
Drova Partners locating
drones in demand areas to
service deliveries
Key Partners
Key Partners:
Food/Grocery Retailers
Drova Partners
(Franchisees)
Key Suppliers:
Drone manufacturers
Cost Structure
Fixed cost for starting initial Drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas (will eventually recoup due to franchisee model),
server costs for developing software models and hosting apps and
services, marketing and sales expenditure
1
Customer Relationships
Established SLAs with
initial business customers
before expanding + two-
way feedback/support
channels with early
customers, recurring deals
and referral rewards for
consumers / strong focus
on consumer support
Original Business Model Canvas
Value Proposition
Problem:
Current delivery services
(human drivers) are slow
and expensive with
limited reach
Need:
Businesses and end
customers are pushing for
faster and inexpensive
delivery with larger reach
6. Channels
Businesses - through
warm intros and
contracts; consumers -
through mobile app and
marketing (ex. user
referrals, social media
ads, news)
Customer Segments
Consumers
desiring fast delivery and
reliable/low-touch option
Retail Food/Grocery
Businesses
looking for further reach
and discovery + lower
delivery costs and more
customer satisfaction /
demand
Revenue Stream
Service fee charged per delivery to businesses and customers,
revenue sharing with Drova Partners for profits made through
deliveries completed via their drones
Value Propositions
Problem:
Current delivery
services (human
drivers) are slow and
expensive with
limited reach
Need:
Businesses and end
customers are
pushing for faster and
inexpensive delivery
with larger reach
Key Resources
Scalable drone
infrastructure via
franchisees,
public consumer app, route
optimization and
autonomous drone
flight software
Key Activities
Regular ordering of retail
products by consumers
Businesses packaging and
loading items for drone
delivery
Drova Partners locating
drones in demand areas to
service deliveries
Key Partners
Key Partners:
Food/Grocery Retailers
Drova Partners
(Franchisees)
Key Suppliers:
Drone manufacturers
Cost Structure
Fixed cost for starting initial Drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas (will eventually recoup due to franchisee model),
server costs for developing software models and hosting apps and
services, marketing and sales expenditure
1
Customer Relationships
Established SLAs with
initial business customers
before expanding + two-
way feedback/support
channels with early
customers, recurring deals
and referral rewards for
consumers / strong focus
on consumer support
Original Business Model Canvas
Value Proposition
Problem:
Current delivery services
(human drivers) are slow
and expensive with
limited reach
Need:
Businesses and end
customers are pushing for
faster and inexpensive
delivery with larger reach
8. Week 1: Providing food delivery
through an autonomous drone service
We thought...
Restaurants and food services would be our customers, because
they need faster, cheaper, and longer-distance delivery.
1
Customers: Owners of restaurants and food/grocery retailers
9. Week 1: Providing food delivery
through an autonomous drone service
We thought...
Restaurants and food services would be our customers, because
they need faster, cheaper, and longer-distance delivery.
1
So we talked to...
11 owners and managers at restaurants in
North Carolina, where regulations allow for drone operations
Customers: Owners of restaurants and food/grocery retailers
10. Learnings:
- Restaurants are not happy with current
delivery services:
“Doordash takes away our control over the
service we provide to our customers. The fees
are too high and the drivers are not too nice
with customers or the restaurants.”
— Mexican Cuisine Worker
1
11. Learnings:
- Restaurants are not happy with current
delivery services:
“Doordash takes away our control over the
service we provide to our customers. The fees
are too high and the drivers are not too nice
with customers or the restaurants.”
— Mexican Cuisine Worker
1
- Restaurants are hesitant about adopting
new technology:
“We wouldn't use DoorDash… we would have
to carry a tablet around.” — Falafel
Restaurant Manager
“People might shoot down drones.”
— Chicken Restaurant Owner
12. Learnings:
- Restaurants are not happy with current
delivery services:
“Doordash takes away our control over the
service we provide to our customers. The fees
are too high and the drivers are not too nice
with customers or the restaurants.”
— Mexican Cuisine Worker
1
- Restaurants are hesitant about adopting
new technology:
“We wouldn't use DoorDash… we would have
to carry a tablet around.” — Falafel
Restaurant Manager
“People might shoot down drones.”
— Chicken Restaurant Owner
Restaurants are
NOT
early adopters
14. Changes:
Focusing more on software
2
Switch customers from
restaurants to food
delivery platforms
Switch key activity from
operating a drone fleet to
providing software to
enable drone delivery
2
16. Week 4: Diving into Regulatory Problem for
Last-mile Drone Delivery
We thought...
The main challenge in adopting last-mile drone delivery for
food is regulatory compliance based on recurring
complaints by customers.
“If regulatory is not on board, you can never do drone deliveries.”
—Zipline Engineer
4
Customers: Technical and Strategy Leads at Intermediary delivery platforms
17. Week 4: Diving into Regulatory Problem for
Last-mile Drone Delivery
We thought...
The main challenge in adopting last-mile drone delivery for
food is regulatory compliance based on recurring
complaints by customers.
“If regulatory is not on board, you can never do drone deliveries.”
—Zipline Engineer
4
So we talked to...
- Drone delivery services executive leaders and flight engineers
(Deuce Drone, Zipline)
- Autonomous driving engineer (Lyft)
- VCs with prior drone investments (Floodgate)
- Executives at Food Delivery Platform (Doordash, Menufy,
Customers: Technical and Strategy Leads at Intermediary delivery platforms
18. Learnings:
- Food delivery platforms are not early
adopters
“We find drone deliveries to be interesting and agree that it
will be the future of delivery, but we want to see traction
through a few successful pilots before partnering together”
- Director at DoorDash
5
19. Learnings:
- Food delivery platforms are not early
adopters
“We find drone deliveries to be interesting and agree that it
will be the future of delivery, but we want to see traction
through a few successful pilots before partnering together”
- Director at DoorDash
5
- Several key components beyond
regulatory are needed to bring value
to drone delivery
“Regulation is key, and it’s interrelated with product
and engineering.”
- Co-founder of Large Drone Delivery Company
20. Learnings:
Move beyond
regulatory and
expand beyond
food delivery
- Food delivery platforms are not early
adopters
“We find drone deliveries to be interesting and agree that it
will be the future of delivery, but we want to see traction
through a few successful pilots before partnering together”
- Director at DoorDash
5
- Several key components beyond
regulatory are needed to bring value
to drone delivery
“Regulation is key, and it’s interrelated with product
and engineering.”
- Co-founder of Large Drone Delivery Company
21. Drova Service -- Key Modules
Networking Software
(Keeps track of drones and dispatches orders to drones to maximize fleet utilization
and speed of delivery)
Fleet Management Platform
(Commercial drones interoperable with Drova software, drones have compartments
for multiple orders to be serviced in one route, maintained by fleet operators)
Autonomous Flight Software
(Software that enables autonomous BVLOS flight such as detect and avoid
algorithms for moving actors, path planning around flight restrictions, etc)
C2 Communication Software
(Software connecting with command and control systems for safety and control
information relay to manage compliance requirements during all stages of delivery)
Calibrated Landing Software
(Software enabling accurate ground mapping and control for safe, calibrated landing
of drones for consumer pickup in local environments)
Drova:
External
APIs
&
Platform
(APIs
for
order
requests,
tracking
deliveries,
and
item
retrieval
via
drone
compartment)
MVP 2.5: Drone Delivery Integration Software
5
22. Cost Structure
• Fixed cost for starting initial drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas, revenue sharing for fleet operators long-term
• Server costs for developing software models, hosting apps and
services
• Marketing and sales expenditure
Channels
Businesses - warm intros
and contracts
Customer Segments
Intermediary delivery
platforms (e.g. UberEats)
Revenue Stream
• Subscription fee for businesses
• Revenue sharing with public network fleet operators
Value Propositions
Problem:
Current human delivery
services (human drivers)
are slow and expensive
and have limited reach
Need:
Businesses are pushing
for inexpensive delivery
and larger reach
Customers are pushing
for inexpensive and fast
delivery
Key Resources
• Scalable drone
infrastructure
• Route optimization
• Autonomous drone flight
software
Key Activities
APIs enabling businesses to
incorporate drone delivery
in their workflow
Fleet management software,
regulatory compliance, and
flight for drone deliveries
Customer Relationships
• Established SLAs with
initial business customers
• Strong focus on customer
support
Key Partners
Food/Grocery
Delivery Platforms
FAA (BEYOND
Program)
Drone manufacturers
Fleet operators
5
23. Value Propositions
Problem
Current human delivery
services (human drivers)
are slow, expensive, and
have limited reach
Need
Food businesses are
pushing for inexpensive
delivery and larger reach
Food retailers have
friction with current
human deliverers and
want higher customer
satisfaction
Key Partners
Food/Grocery
Delivery Platforms
FAA (BEYOND
Program)
Drone manufacturers
Fleet operators
Customer Segments
Intermediary food/
grocery delivery
platforms (e.g.
UberEats)
• Technical Leaders
• Strategy Leaders
• SWEs
• Customers: Food
retailers, food buyers
Revenue Stream
• Upfront sales for software
• Subscription fee for businesses
• Revenue sharing with public network fleet operators
Key Resources
• Regulatory compliance: FAA-
approval on for-profit BVLOS
operations
• Physical: Charging stations,
payload containers
• Hardware: Drone fleets, drone
and platform sensors, data servers
• Software: Route optimization,
flight management, landing control,
communications, drone network
management
Key Activities
• Software development kit
(SDK) with APIs enabling food
delivery platforms to add
drone delivery into their end-
to-end delivery workflow
• Platform for fleet operators
to view/manage drone
deliveries
Channels
Direct sales
(software
solutions )
Cost Structure
• Fixed cost for starting initial drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas, revenue sharing for fleet operators long-term
• Server costs for developing software models, hosting apps and
services
• Marketing and sales expenditure
Customer Relationships
• Established SLAs with
initial business customers
• Strong focus on customer
support
5
Key Partners
Food/Grocery
Delivery Platforms
FAA (BEYOND
Program)
Drone manufacturers
Fleet operators
Key Activities
• Software development kit
(SDK) with APIs enabling food
delivery platforms to add
drone delivery into their end-
to-end delivery workflow
• Platform for fleet operators
to view/manage drone
deliveries
Cost Structure
• Fixed cost for starting initial drone network infrastructure in high-
demand areas, revenue sharing for fleet operators long-term
• Server costs for developing software models, hosting apps and
services
• Marketing and sales expenditure
Customer Relationships
• Established SLAs with
initial business customers
• Strong focus on customer
support
Customer Segments
Intermediary
delivery platforms
• Technical Leaders
• Strategy Leaders
• SWEs
25. Week 6: Focusing further into
Drone Fleet Management Platform
Customers: Companies operating drone delivery
We thought...
Tackling regulatory across modules is too expansive as an MVP.
It is most feasible to focus on one module—fleet management,
supported by ongoing pilot tests with different drone types and
large fleet expectations.
6
26. Week 6: Focusing further into
Drone Fleet Management Platform
Customers: Companies operating drone delivery
We thought...
Tackling regulatory across modules is too expansive as an MVP.
It is most feasible to focus on one module—fleet management,
supported by ongoing pilot tests with different drone types and
large fleet expectations.
Getting out of the building
- Specify fleet management features
- 10 customer interviews with delivery companies using drones
and drone providers (UPS, Zipline)
6
27. Drova Service -- Key Modules
Networking Software
(Keeps track of drones and dispatches orders to drones to maximize fleet utilization
and speed of delivery)
Fleet Management Platform
(Commercial drones interoperable with Drova software, drones have compartments
for multiple orders to be serviced in one route, maintained by fleet operators)
Autonomous Flight Software
(Software that enables autonomous BVLOS flight such as detect and avoid algorithms
for moving actors, path planning around flight restrictions, etc)
C2 Communication Software
(Software connecting with command and control systems for safety and control
information relay to manage compliance requirements during all stages of delivery)
Calibrated Landing Software
(Software enabling accurate ground mapping and control for safe, calibrated landing
of drones for consumer pickup in local environments)
Drova:
External
APIs
&
Platform
(APIs
for
order
requests,
tracking
deliveries,
and
item
retrieval
via
drone
compartment)
6
MVP 2.5: Drone Delivery Integration Software
28. Drova Service -- Key Modules
Networking Software
(Keeps track of drones and dispatches orders to drones to maximize fleet utilization
and speed of delivery)
Fleet Management Platform
(Commercial drones interoperable with Drova software, drones have compartments
for multiple orders to be serviced in one route, maintained by fleet operators)
Autonomous Flight Software
(Software that enables autonomous BVLOS flight such as detect and avoid algorithms
for moving actors, path planning around flight restrictions, etc)
C2 Communication Software
(Software connecting with command and control systems for safety and control
information relay to manage compliance requirements during all stages of delivery)
Calibrated Landing Software
(Software enabling accurate ground mapping and control for safe, calibrated landing
of drones for consumer pickup in local environments)
Drova:
External
APIs
&
Platform
(APIs
for
order
requests,
tracking
deliveries,
and
item
retrieval
via
drone
compartment)
MVP 2.5: Drone Delivery Integration Software
6
29. Goal
Platform that connects, controls, and oversees logistics for different delivery drones.
MVP 3.0: Drone Fleet Management Platform
Users
Drone pilots and delivery workers
Pilot and Drone
Onboarding
Tracking,
Communication,
& Networking
Flight Mission
Control &
Logistics
Drone Fleet
Control &
Operations
Legal, Safety, &
Security
Features
6
30. Learnings:
Too early for
scaling with drone
fleets...
- Positive customer feedback, but the
customers are still in discovery mode, not
scaling with fleets
- “Our endgame is to have a true fleet of
different drone types, where we absolutely
would need fleet management...but we
don’t have a fleet right now.”
- Supervisor of UPS Drone Delivery
Program
6
31. Learnings:
Too early for
scaling with drone
fleets...
- Positive customer feedback, but the
customers are still in discovery mode, not
scaling with fleets
- “Our endgame is to have a true fleet of
different drone types, where we absolutely
would need fleet management...but we
don’t have a fleet right now.”
- Supervisor of UPS Drone Delivery
Program
- Single-use drone modules for logistics and
controls could fulfill customer discovery
needs
6
33. Goal
Platform that connects, controls, and oversees logistics for different delivery drones.
MVP 3.0: Drone Fleet Management Platform
Users
Drone pilots and delivery workers
Pilot and Drone
Onboarding
Tracking,
Communication,
& Networking
Flight Mission
Control &
Logistics
Drone Fleet
Control &
Operations
Legal, Safety, &
Security
Features
6
6
35. Week 8: Honing on Drone Flight Checklists
& Compliance Documentation
Customers: Companies operating drone delivery
We thought...
Our automated pre-flight checklist is the priority submodule feature,
because it necessary and a tedious challenge for all drone flights
(single-use and fleetwide).
8
36. Week 8: Honing on Drone Flight Checklists
& Compliance Documentation
Customers: Companies operating drone delivery
We thought...
Our automated pre-flight checklist is the priority submodule feature,
because it necessary and a tedious challenge for all drone flights
(single-use and fleetwide).
8
So we decided to...
- Build interactive pre-flight prototype
- Test for customer feedback with drone delivery companies,
drone pilots and experts, drone providers, and non-delivery
drone users (inspection, public safety)
37. MVP 4.0: Pre-Flight Checklist
Features:
1. Fleet overview
dashboard
2. Connected with drone
data streams for tracking
3. Automated pre-flight
checklist
4. Detailed breakdown of
action items and safety
level for current flight
8
38. Learnings:
Not quite
product-market
fit
8
- Recurring evangelist interest in solution, but
MVP does not meet their needs yet.
- Many challenges include high variety of
customer needs, tension between drone and
aviation aircraft standards for safety, and
autonomous flight approvals
- “The existing automated checklists by current
services are very poor. We use our own custom
ones, but this varies from smaller businesses to
larger ones. ”
- University Professor in Unmanned Systems,
and Drone Business Owner
39. Learnings:
Not quite
product-market
fit
8
- Recurring evangelist interest in solution, but
MVP does not meet their needs yet.
- Many challenges include high variety of
customer needs, tension between drone and
aviation aircraft standards for safety, and
autonomous flight approvals
- “The existing automated checklists by current
services are very poor. We use our own custom
ones, but this varies from smaller businesses to
larger ones. ”
- University Professor in Unmanned Systems,
and Drone Business Owner
- Could target customization needs in
documentation for launching drone services
(like Clerky)
41. Changes:
Improving our MVP
Revise MVP with
customizable
documentation manager
for launching drone
services
Test with customers
across SMBs and large-
scale delivery
companies
8
43. Customer Segments
• Order fulfillment/ last-
mile delivery logistics
(e.g. UPS-early adopters,
DoorDash-later adopters)
- Technical Leaders
- Strategy Leaders
- SWEs
- Drone
operators/pilots
- End-customers:
package recipients
Key Activities
• Product development
- Platform enabling last-mile
delivery companies to employ a
fleet of drones for delivery
services
-Standardizing registration,
unifying ops workflows and
compliance across drone types
-Dashboard with unified controls
across different drones
-Real-time analytics
• Customer development
• Partnership development
Key Resources
• Regulatory compliance:
Documentation sets for FAA-
approval on for-profit BVLOS
operations
• Hardware: Tracking hardware,
data servers
• Software: Waiver & document
tracking, route optimization, flight
management, communications,
drone network management
Revenue Stream
• Subscription pricing model based on size of drone fleet, # of
different drone types, # of operator users, # of drone programs/use
cases, and customization of offerings/modules
Cost Structure
• Server costs for developing unified programs, software modules,
hosting apps and services
• Product development
• Marketing and sales expenditure
Value Propositions
Problem
• Delivery: Current human
delivery services (human
drivers) are slow, expensive,
and have limited reach
• Other: Performing tasks
which require both broad and
up-close views of large objects
Need
• Delivery: Cheaper costs,
larger geographic reach, tighter
delivery pipeline, reduced risk
of human delivery manipulation
• Other: Drones provide
improved safety, visibility and
flexibility to navigate situations
Product
Drone fleet management
enabling operations &
coordination across different
drone types
Customer
Relationships
• Get: Free trials with
companies seeking fleet
management services
• Keep: Customer support
and customizability
• Grow: Upsell additional
modules to service growing
drone fleet
Channels
• B2B direct sales
(providing software
directly to customers
currently with or without
drone fleets)
Key Partners
• FAA (BEYOND
Program)
• Local government
transportation
departments
• Drone
manufacturers/OEMs
• Pilots/fleet operators
• Order fulfillment/
delivery platforms
- Food/Grocery
Delivery
Platforms
- Food/Grocery
Retailers
Final Business Model Canvas
44. Final MVP
Features:
1. Fleet overview
dashboard
2. Connected with drone
data streams for tracking
3. Automated pre-flight
checklist
4. Detailed breakdown of
action items and safety
level for current flight
5. Documentation
Manager
9
46. Market Size
Total Addressable Market: $6.7B
The market size for drone delivery is estimated to reach $6.7B
Serviceable Available Market: $4.4B
65% of the TAM is projected to be direct to consumer delivery
Target Market: $440M
10% of the SAM is obtainable given heavy need for ongoing regulatory compliance and approval help
Y1-Y3 Revenue: $720K → $4.3M → $18.4M
Estimating active drone subscriptions (20, 120, 512) * 3k per drone
monthly subscription fee * 12 months
Source: https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2021/05/17/2230618/0/en/At-53-CAGR-Growth-Global-Drone-Package-Delivery-Market-Size-Share-Will-
Reach-to-USD-6773-Million-by-2026-Facts-Factors.html
47. Future Plans
Market Not Ready + Lack of Product-Market Fit
Most companies we targeted were still in the discovery phase and
not in the growth phase.
Our product offering aims to automate processes such as regulatory
compliance and fleet management, but:
- Drone delivery companies are operating at most 5 drones
- Regulatory processes are not defined enough for automation
- Market susceptible to much change
48. Overall Learnings
● More companies are starting to look into drone delivery.
● Although drone delivery companies don’t need our solution today,
they see the need for our service in the future as the regulatory
space and multiple drone operations grows.