“You’re stupid.”

We’ve heard that quite a few times when we’ve explained that we don’t support the Countering CCP Drones Act. 

And to be fair, it’s not a piece of criticism without merit. 

After all, Modovolo is a drone start-up based in Upstate New York with a small, scrappy team creating an entire new drone category (modularity). Our drone was designed in the USA and all manufacturing will be in the USA (or close allied trade partners of the USA, e.g., UK, Germany, etc.)—including all of our suppliers. 

And not only that but the main architect of the Countering CCP Drones Act is Congresswoman Elise Stefanik - and we just so happen to be based in Elise Stefanik’s district in New York. 

And, because we are privileged to have former Air Force and Army veterans on our team, we have the kind of pedigree that just exudes a level of patriotism where no one could ever even think to question our stance against the threats of competing with China. That in itself would lead many to conclude that we would support the Countering CCP Drones Act.  

The net/net here is: We have everything to gain from the Countering CCP Drones Act. 

So why doesn’t Modovolo support it? 

First, before we dig into it, we need to make clear that we are politically agnostic. We have no affiliation with either political party. Second, we respect Representative Stefanik immensely, and we agree with her admonition that we have a lot to fear of China—and that we need to act now. 

Where we differ with Representative Stefanik is the approach. We don’t believe that legislative fiat will achieve the stated aims. Here’s why. 

Free Market: The Market Always Finds a Way.  There are very few things on which economists agree but one of those is this: if there is demand for a product, the market will find a way to supply it. And the market wants DJI’s drones (and they are great products). We’ve already seen one example of this with the DJI-clone company Anzu and I’ll make a bold prediction that Anzu won’t be the only one. An example for you history freaks: by the late 1970s US car manufacturers were getting their asses kicked by Toyota, Honda, and Nissan so protectionism was deployed to limit the number of cars imported from Japan. Problem solved? No. The Japanese simply built factories and supply chains in the USA to circumvent the limit.  

The Surveillance Problem. What about the threat of surveillance? We agree that it’s a major problem, but we think that ship has sailed. There are hundreds of thousands of DJI drones operating in the USA and let’s be honest here: DJI makes very good, rugged drones that last for years. It’s not hard to imagine that even in a perfect world where the DJI-ban is 100% effective (and no more DJI drones are imported) the reality of surveillance will persist for a very long time. 

Free Market: Let the Best Ideas Win. There are many reasons why the USA is the dominant economy of the world, but we can all agree that one of the main reasons is this: it’s a free market where anyone across the world can sell anything. Free competition and the pursuit of capitalism are the rules. And that is what drives innovation and lowers costs. And the more competitors, the better. DJI is an impressive competitor. It will only make us a better entrant in the UAV industry.

The History of Winning. We’ve been down this path before as a country - many, many times. An enemy has a massive advantage, and we lose our minds thinking that we are permanently screwed. Case in point: through the 1950s and 1960s the USSR was crushing us in Space technology and exploration. And we all know how that story ended.

The Winning Approach. We believe that the right approach is that there needs to be USA-designed and manufactured drones that not only match DJI but also surpass DJI’s capabilities and features—at prices far below DJI. Then consumers ditch DJI drones and purchase those USA drones.

In our view, this is what will ultimately end the surveillance problem. 

About the Author: Justin Call is the CEO of Modovolo, a start-up that's launched the Lift, an endlessly configurable modular drone platform of Lift Pods and Utility Pods that are clicked together like Legos to build the right drone for every application, with hours of flight time, and at a price orders of magnitude less than anything on the market. You’ll want to see it for yourself.