The Brief
Following a period of intense investment in drone technology, leading global technology company Intel wanted to create a powerful visual demonstration that would celebrate the company’s commitment to drone technology and that would also help dispel public perception that drones were ‘dangerous’.
The event would be also used as the backdrop to Intel CEO Brian Krzanich’s keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, one of the world’s leading trade events for the electronics and technology industries.
The Solution
Intel teamed up with Guinness World Records and Ars Electronica Futurelab, a transdisclipinary organisation that draws together art, science and technology to create cutting-edge, future-led projects and research. The team’s mission: to set a new world record for the Most Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) Airborne Simultaneously.
Creating a successful and spectacular event required precise timing and the co-ordinated deployment of an army of participants including 25 drone operators, each controlling four machines.
The hard work paid off and the team achieved a new Guinness World Records title (dubbed ‘Drone 100’ by Intel), producing an incredible feat of 3-D airborne choreography set to music performed by a live orchestra.
Less than a year on from the original record attempt, Intel returned to Guinness World Records to attempt the record again, this time to showcase the properties of its Intel Shooting Star drone, a UAV specifically designed for light shows. They smashed their own record launching 500 drones simultaneously, all controlled by just one person.
There is so much potential in the future with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Intel is passionate about the opportunities these UAVs bring, such as inspection, photo and videography, agriculture and lots more. There is a part of creativity – being able to see these as a form of light shows in the sky – that is an intricate balance between technology and art. ARS Electronica Futurelab shares that vision and is a great partner in helping realize that with us, we can push the boundaries of technology, art and creativity as we did with Drone 100.
