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FORTUNE.COM// JA N.1 .19tral location,” he says. “In practical terms, this
can mean the difference between a mother
bleeding to death during childbirth or receiv-
ing the transfusion she needs.”
This is just the start for Zipline, how-
ever, and Rwanda is just its first market.
In April, the company unveiled what it
claims is the world’s fastest delivery drone.
The next-generation drone can reach a top
speed of 80 miles per hour with a roundtrip
range covering 100 miles, carrying up to
1.75 kilograms of cargo (one blood pack typi-
cally weighs 0.5 kg).
Rinaudo says Zipline has decreased the
amount of time between receiving an order
and launching a flight from 10 minutes to one,
and increased the number of possible daily
delivery flights from each fulfillment center
to 500. The increased radius of each center
means the company can now serve popula-
tions of up to 10 million people.
In 2017, Zipline made neighboring Tanza-
nia, almost 40 times the size of Rwanda and
with almost 70% of its people living in rural
areas, its second market, and it has received
the backing of venture capital firms—securing
over $40 million in funding. It is also set to
launch back home in the U.S.
Reuter says the impact the company has
had in Rwanda is exceptional, but its value
goes even beyond that. “Zipline is playing
an important role not just in the markets it
currently operates but also in demonstrat-
ing to countries around the world that drone
delivery can be a reality today and provide a
socially impactful service,” he says.
“As drone technology evolves from carry-
ing small, lightweight items to a heavier lift
capacity and goes down in cost, we expect to
see drone delivery used for a greater variety
of commercial activities,” Reuter says. “In the
African context, this could include transport
of agricultural goods that are often damaged
during long journeys on trucks.”
Though these commercial-use cases are
clear and the opportunities sizable, Rinaudo
is more focused on the job currently at hand.
“Billions of people across the world lack access
to adequate health care. This isn’t an African
problem; it’s a global problem,” he says. “The
difference is that African countries are leading
the way in developing cutting-edge solutions.”Better known for their use in warfare or for
buzzing overhead in urban areas taking photo-
graphs, unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones,
are often tightly regulated. The small African
nation of Rwanda, however, has taken a more
positive attitude toward their application.
The country’s President, Paul Kagame, is
feared and feted in equal quantities, accused
of co-opting Rwanda’s democratic system but
also praised for presiding over a regime that
has put technology at the heart of the land-
locked country’s development.
Mountainous Rwanda has 3,000 miles of
road, but only 25% of that is paved, and much
of it is washed away during rainy seasons. This
makes transportation tough, and hospitals
struggle to procure blood and vaccines in
emergency situations. It was in conversations
with Rinaudo in 2015 that the government
suggested Zipline try to fix the problem.
Rwandan airspace was opened to the com-
pany, and Zipline started its delivery service in
October 2016. Remote clinics can now place
orders for lifesaving blood via text message,
with drones dispatched from fulfillment
centers dotted around the country to deliver
it. Since its launch, Zipline drones have flown
over 300,000 miles on more than 10,000
flights, delivering thousands of units of blood.
Timothy Reuter, head of the civil drones
program at the World Economic Forum, says
the impact is significant. “Drone delivery can
help prevent stock-outs of critical medical
items and eliminate wastage from expiration
by providing just-in-time delivery from a cen-VENTURE
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prepares a
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