TECHNOLOGY Bloomberg Businessweek June 17, 2019PHOTOGRAPH
BY
VICTOR
PRADO
FOR
BLOOMBERG
BUSINESSWEEK
of Science and Technology and turned it into an
empire that accounts for more than 70% of the
roughly $4.5 billion civilian drone market, accord-
ing to analysts and drone registrations. Despite
such success, DJI faces challenges from shrinking
profits in the drone business and U.S. national
security concerns around using products made in
China. The RoboMaster S1, like the RoboMasters
competition, is meant to foster enthusiasm for the
field, particularly in Wang’s home country.
DJI is charging $500 for the S1 take-home kit,
which includes numerous parts for the robot’s
frame as well as a series of sensors and many, many
screws. A hands-on experience with the product
confirms that it takes a dad and his 10-year-old and
7-year-old sons about three hours and six cookies
total to bring the RoboMaster S1 to life. But there’s
joy to be had at the end of the experience.
Users can link the RoboMaster S1 to their smart-
phones or tablets to see through the bot’s main
camera, steering by poking at the screen or simply
tilting it in different directions, which the mobile
device registers through its accelerometer and
other sensors. If another S1 comes in sight, the
system can lock onto it and hit targets on its body
with either a laser or pearl-size plastic pellets
that can be fired machine gun-style. The pellets
are filled with water and dissolve into dust as the
water evaporates—a problem solved relatively
easily with a broom and some kids who weren’t
psyched to clean.
A player can race the tank around trying to
spot targets placed in various locations inside the
house before a competing bot does, with com-
puter vision algorithms confirming the results.
The contests proved far more interesting to the
10-year-old and 7-year-old than the building
portion of the exercise, but results may vary based
on the kid.
Even though DJI is the only Chinese tech brand
many Americans can recognize from store shelves,
it’s unclear whether consumers around the world
will take to the assembly process or whether
parents will really leap at a $500 opportunity to put
tiny warring tanks in their homes. The company
envisions the S1 as the first of many educational
robots—and possibly a way to take its RoboMasters
competition from niche reality TV to some-
thing more. “In the future, robotics will become
another sport,” says Yang, who’s pursuing a Ph.D.
in mechanical engineering at Carnegie Mellon
University.“That’sourvision.”—AshleeVanceTHE BOTTOM LINE Kids may not love the assembly or cleanup
portions of the RoboMaster S1 experience, but it’s tough to argue
with the fun of a living room battle between minitanks.“We want it
to look like an
interesting
toy that then
teaches basic
programming
and
mechanical
knowledge”bullets or as medics that repair wounded comrades.
During the contest, students operate their
robots from remote consoles under the barked
orders of a commander. Afterward, they retire
to a chaotic workspace for robot repairs and
upgrades in the belly of the sports arena, where
soldering irons, wrenches, and other tools are on
hand. Some competitors go all day without eating.
It’s all robots, all the time, until eventually a win-
ner is crowned in a final match attended by thou-
sands of screaming spectators. And yes, DJI films
the whole thing to turn it into a reality show, even-
tually offering jobs to some of the contestants.
Frank Wang, DJI’s reclusive engineer founder
and chief executive officer, started the company
out of his dorm room at the Hong Kong University23Thelatestcreationfromdrone
king DJI is a bit more DIY