Joe Stough discusses his career in the drone sector and how it is a profession that is emerging as somewhat future-proof.
Beyond death and taxes there are no guarantees in life and in the professional space, artificial intelligence (AI) has created even more uncertainty. From job reduction and elimination, to added responsibilities and increased need for upskilling, AI has changed how the average STEM professional works.
But for Joe Stough, the CEO and chairman of FlyGuys, a US-based national network of more than 17,000 certified drone pilots, while many industries are feeling the negative effects of widespread AI implementation, the drone sector and the professionals who keep it running, are showing resilience.
“We sit in a very different spot than most pure software roles,” Stough told SiliconRepublic.com. “Our work lives at the intersection of code and concrete, drones inspecting solar farms, bridges, refineries, crops, and power lines. Those assets still have to be built, maintained and monitored in the real world, no matter what the Nasdaq is doing.”
Time is another significant factor, as the technology cycle moves faster than a lot of organisations can keep pace with. He said, “You can’t just buy a drone, put it on a shelf, and expect it to stay relevant for five years. Hardware, sensors, and standards evolve every 24 – 36 months.
“Most enterprises don’t want to constantly reinvest in equipment, training, and certification – it’s far more efficient to rely on professionals who already live at the cutting edge and maintain up-to-date aircraft, sensors and credentials.”
On top of that, he is of the opinion that regulation has finally begun to catch up with what technology can do, particularly as there is increased clarity around beyond visual line of sight operations (BVLOS) and critical infrastructure inspections, where companies can move from pilot projects and experiments to fully operational programmes.
“When a utility shifts thousands of miles of inspections from bucket trucks to drones, or a solar developer standardises aerial inspections across every site, that’s not a side project – it’s durable work that requires trained operators, not hobbyists,” said Stough.
With that in mind, what skills do people in the drone ecosystem need to leverage, in order to capitalise on change, rather than fall behind?
Future needs
While it has been Stough’s experience thus far that the work companies perform in this space hasn’t immeasurably changed, he noted the tools that they rely on certainly have. Especially as a range of industries are expected to do far more with considerably less at their disposal.
That, he said, is where drones come in, as they enable organisations to keep track of their assets. “They reduce field risks, they cut costs and they give companies a consistent data stream they can actually make decisions from. And because the stakes are higher – extreme weather, aging infrastructure, tighter margins – companies can’t afford to experiment.”
And for those looking to work in this field, there are a number of skills to prioritise. On the technical side Stough said professionals should learn how to operate aircrafts safely, manage sensors, build foundational knowledge in airspace regulation and capture clean, usable data.
But, as with many careers, he urged professionals not to sleep on vital soft skills, describing situational judgement as an ability that “separates great pilots from everyone else”.
He added, “Enterprise work isn’t done in perfect conditions. You’re dealing with weather, construction crews moving around and assets that are sometimes in rough shape. The pilots who thrive are the ones who can make smart calls under pressure, communicate clearly with on-site teams and still deliver high-quality data.”
But it isn’t just in drone flight and technology that experts can forge a career. Stough said professional drone pilots often pivot into specialised data roles as so much of what they do “sits upstream of AI and digital twins”.
“If you understand sensors, workflows and how imagery is captured in the field, you’re a natural fit for data QA, annotation, reality capture operations or mission planning. Others lean into the technical side – building custom mission plans, integrating sensors or supporting companies that deploy fleets at scale.
“There’s also strong demand for people who can bridge both worlds in customer success and field engineering roles, especially inside utilities, energy construction and agriculture companies that are adopting drones quickly.”
Ultimately, for Stough, while the majority of industries discuss the issues of automation replacing people, he said, “AI can only work with real world inputs and someone has to go out and capture that data safely, accurately and on schedule.
“So every time AI opens up a new use case, it creates more missions for certified pilots. AI in this case is actually increasing the demand for humans who know how to operate safely, troubleshoot in the field and deliver the data these systems rely on.”
This he predicts will bring a shift, in which pilots will engage in additional specialisation, that is to say, they will focus on adjacent fields as thermal specialists, LiDAR technicians, agricultural scouts and utility inspectors. As more industries scale their programmes, they need people who understand the nuances of those environments.
“This industry isn’t slowing down. Drone work is becoming core infrastructure for everything from energy to agriculture to insurance, and the talent side has to keep pace. If you bring curiosity and discipline to the table, there’s a lot of room to build a real career here.”
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