TAIPEI (Taiwan News) —Fifteen Taiwanese manufacturers will partake in Europe’s flagship event for autonomous systems, mobility, and robotics on Feb. 18-20 in Dusseldorf, Germany.
The Taiwan contingent also includes two government-backed groups: the Asia UAV AI Innovation Application R&D Center in Chiayi and the Taiwan Defense Industry Development Association. The exhibition attracted 170 exhibitors from 28 different countries, per CNA.
The exhibition focuses on innovative research and development of autonomous systems, including applications in traditional heavy industry and military applications. German military giant Rheinmetall is one of the exhibitors attracting industry attention.
Since the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, technology has been a major focus on the battlefield. Germany is the second-largest military aid provider to Ukraine, following the US.
Modern militaries are now making use of technology to operate unmanned vehicles. German startup Helsling exhibited the HX-2 drone, which uses AI. German steelmaker Thyssenkrupp cooperated with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to develop the Blue Whale unmanned submarine.
Chiayi Department of Economic Development Officer Lin Yu-zhi (林裕智) said Taiwan's domestic drone industry supply chain has made substantial progress in chip research and technical design through the government support.
"Our biggest limitation is the lack of mass production," said Lin. He said the cost of manufacturing drones is high for materials and design.
The limited quantity means local producers cannot increase production capacity. Through international orders, local drone makers can open manufacturing lines and use mass production to lower costs.
Lin said that Chinese-made drones involve cybersecurity concerns in defense and commercial applications. Lin said the US and Europe have joined the non-red supply chain.
Lin sees this as an opportunity for Taiwanese firms to increase domestic production capacity through business-to-business cooperation facilitated by participation in international trade fairs.
Lin said the increasing popularity of drone applications can involve airspace issues potentially entering military-restricted routes. Therefore, only demonstration projects approved by the central government can conduct relevant test flights. However, in terms of opening up to the public and general businesses, "drone airspace regulations are still in the breakthrough stage."
According to statistics from Drone Industry Insights (DII), a German drone business intelligence research platform, global drone operations within visual range (VLOS) and beyond visual range (BVLOS) will reach 10.83 million hours in 2024, an increase of 29% from 2023.
The drone industry has grown in various consumer and industrial fields as AI and machine learning have expanded consumer demand and adoption rates. The global output value of drones is expected to reach US$101.1 billion (NT$3.3266 trillion) by 2033, per a DII press release.
