大江
Background
1.Who is DJI?
2.What do they make?
3.What are drones and gimbals used for?
4.Is DJI a big company?
5.Where does the company operate?
6.Who is Frank Wang?
DJI is a Chinese technology company headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong with manufacturing facilities throughout the world. It is known as a manufacturer of drones, for aerial photography and videography. DJI also design and manufacture camera gimbals[相机稳定器], flight platforms[飞行平台], cameras, propulsion systems, camera stabilizers, and flight control systems[控制飞行器的系统]. DJI is the world's leader in commercial and civilian drone industry, accounting for over 70% of the drone market. Its drone technology has been used globally for the music, television and film industries, including K-pop music videos[韩国流行电视] and the sets of Emmy Award-nominated television productions[艾美奖] such as The Amazing Race, Better Call Saul, Game of Thrones, and many more. It is also known to be the first Chinese company to lead a global tech revolution! The company is worth more than 2.8 billion dollars, and with 4000 employees, operates divisions in China, Hong Kong, Japan. DJI’s CEO, Frank Wang is the world’s first drone billionaire. Frank Wang is shy remarkably grounded and measured. He started DJI which stands for Da-Jiang Innovations in 2006 in Shenzhen in China. Many fans also call it the “Apple of drones, because of its 70% market share of consumer drones.
Frank Wang's early life
Where did Frank Wang grow up?
What did Frank’s dad do?
What was Frank’s childhood hobby?
What did Frank major in in university?
What did Frank build in his dorm room in senior year?
Born in 1980, Frank grew up in Hangzhou, on China’s central coast, a place that once was Alibaba’s home city. Frank was the son of a teacher[老师] turned small-business owner[下海创业] and an engineer father. He used to spend most of his free time, reading about model airplanes. Frank received his very first long-desired remote-controlled helicopter, at the age of 16. Anyway, later, he joined the East China Normal University in Shanghai to pursue his further studies in psychology. But since he was so crazy about flying objects, and had spent much of his youth building toy models, frank had developed an obsession with helicopter drones. He wanted to build a career in it! But due to his weak academic performance, there was no option of getting into American elites with the likes of MIT or Stanford. Hence, rejected by his top choices, Frank dropped out, and had joined East China Normal University, and joined and ended up at the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology in 2003. Although, he didn’t really find his sense of purpose for a while, during his senior year, he managed to build a helicopter flight-control system, that too out of his dorm room, which led him to his true destiny. Under the mentorship of Prof Li Zexiang, Frank managed to develop the unmanned miniature helicopter which achieved world’s first flight on Mount Everest by reaching nearly to the top.
The birth of DJI
What did Frank first make and sell when he first started?
From where did DJI got its first investment?
What product did DJI market at trade shows?
What was DJI’s most ambitious product?
What was special about this product?
Was DJI’s success limited to the China market?
After graduation, Frank Wang and his friends begun working out of a three-bedroom apartment, with what was left of Frank’s university scholarship. He first sold a few helicopters at the cost of RMB 15,000 for RMB 50,000. By the end of the year 2006, DJI was selling about 20 controllers a month, and had also received angel funding of about $90,000 from Frank’s family friend. Fast forward two years! The year was 2008. DJI’s first drone was well under development. What started as a hobby, had now turned into a full-fledge business!
DJI’s had started making more advanced flight controllers with autopilot functions, and were marketing at niche trade shows. Soon, DJI had put all the pieces together for a complete drone package: software, propellers, frame, gimbal and remote control. Eventually, the company unveiled its most ambitions – Phantom, in January 2013! This was the first ready-to-fly, pre-assembled Quad-copter that could be up in the air within an hour of its un-boxing and wouldn’t break apart with its first crash. The simplicity and ease-of-use, led to the unlocking of the market, beyond obsessed enthusiasts. Phantom went on to become the company’s bestselling product, that too with very little marketing. This increased their revenue by fivefold. 30% of their revenues now came from the US, 30% from Europe and 30% from Asia, and the rest came from Latin America and Africa. The company has since grown to become the world’s largest consumer drone manufacturer.
Awards and controversies
What award did DJI get in 2017?
Was DJI’s publicity all positive?
Was DJI’s image affected by these negative news?
In 2017, DJI won a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award for its camera drone technology, which was recognized for excellence in engineering creativity, providing directors and cinematographers an affordable and accessible platform to create low-altitude aerial images, opening up creative possibilities and facilitating the distinct looks of some TV shows. Interestingly, for all those unaware, there have been many incidents where DJI-made drones have made the headlines: one which being the crash-landing on the White House lawn, another one being – where the drone was used to land a bottle of radioactive waste on the roof of the Japanese prime minister’s office, etc…In fact, DJI has also been in news for where the drones have been used to sneak drugs, weapons and a mobile phone into a prison courtyard outside of London. But despite all the unintended publicity, the company has managed to maintain its superiority and credibility!
