For years, DJI drones have unlocked immense value for farmers nationwide, driving yield increases, reducing costs, and enabling more sustainable and innovative farming practices. Efforts to restrict farmers' access to DJI’s leading agriculture drone solutions - on baseless allegations - will only harm the industry and the broader communities it supports. In fact, farmers and industry voices have labeled such concerns as "overblown" and warned that these actions could lead to job losses.
Below we address key allegations from a letter sent by 12 members of Congress to the U.S. Department of Agriculture last week.
Get The Facts
- The letter alleges that DJI’s market leading role may be a result of ‘unfair trade practices and massive government subsidies’. In truth, DJI drones remain the product-of-choice across industries because of the combination of reliability, innovation and safety of our products - and because of our first mover advantage. Under the definition employed by DJI’s critics, virtually any company could be considered ‘subsidized.’
- Portraying DJI’s innovation-driven market leadership as a malicious attempt to “jeopardize America’s food supply” is not only completely false but also highly contradictory. In reality, DJI’s agriculture drone solutions have proven to support sustainable farming and help farmers incorporate precision agriculture techniques, enabling them to boost yields, lower crop input costs, and avoid expensive yield losses.
- DJI is a privately held and controlled company, and has been since its founding in 2006. The founder controls the company. No government entity or representatives sit on the board or have any role in its operations. DJI is also not a military company, and it does not have ties to the Chinese military. In fact, we remain one of few drone companies to clearly denounce and actively discourage use of our drones in combat. We do not manufacture military-grade equipment, nor do we pursue business opportunities for combat use or operations.
- DJI drones are safe and align with best practice cybersecurity. Despite critics pushing a multi-year political campaign raising concerns about the security of DJI drones, third-party audits and feedback from end users have consistently shown otherwise. Since 2017, we have continuously invested in regular security audits performed by reputable third-party experts, while also enhancing the privacy controls available across our drone models. DJI is also aligned with U.S. government and industry guidance for drone operators to practice good security hygiene and to perform regular reviews and training to ensure their protocols remain up to date with industry standards.
- DJI has never received any requests for overseas data under China's National Security Law and National Intelligence Law. If it were to receive such an order, DJI's policy is to review the request to check if it meets legal requirements for disclosure. Part of that requirement is that the disclosure would only include data that has been shared with DJI within the national jurisdiction of the government agency requesting it. To add, this only applies to data DJI does have access to - as we have said earlier: DJI does not collect flight logs, photos, or videos by default.
Contrary to the letter’s misleading portrayal of DJI’s intentions in the U.S., our drones are designed and made accessible to enhance farming capabilities, making them more sustainable and resilient - especially in light of the growing risks posed by climate change.
DJI drones also continue to create jobs and new businesses within the broader agricultural industry. Not all farmers fly their own DJI drones. Many rely on drone service providers, creating a profitable business opportunity for budding entrepreneurs. For example, a former paralegal in Oklahoma began a drone spraying business after she realized how the technology could help her family’s farm, and a young entrepreneur in Ohio offers small farmers in Lorain County aerial crop spraying support in areas where crop dusting is not feasible. Meanwhile, other US-based and led companies have developed specialized software for DJI drones that are tailored specially for the agricultural sector.
If these members of Congress are truly interested in strengthening the U.S.’ agricultural capabilities and supporting farmers nationwide, they should:
- Engage directly with farmers to see firsthand how they use drone technologies to optimize their operations and increase yields,
- Develop clear, technology-based data security standards that all drone operators and manufacturers must follow, regardless of their country of origin,
- Refrain from taking action on market-leading technologies - that support the growth and development of the industry - on baseless grounds.
