DJI Stares Down COVID-19 and Cold Shoulder From U.S.

DJI is one of the world's Most Interesting Tech Firms, a new Bloomberg Businessweek profile reveals. For starters, the Chinese dronemaker is building a new HQ that looks like an altar to the skies (mock-up above).

The backstory: DJI became the world's top consumer dronemaker by leveraging a deep bench of engineering and hardware acumen, turning drones from hobbyist indulgence into a Best Buy mainstay. Most DJI products are reliable, ready out of the box, and as powerful as smartphones.

But just ask Icarus

Fly too high and you run into trouble. DJI's focus on affordably priced drones has shrunk margins, leading it to hawk new robotics, cameras, and B2B wares. It's also experienced corporate snafus, most notably a $150 million internal fraud scandal. Then there's COVID-19, which is impacting all tech manufacturing.

• DJI is persona non grata in D.C., since the U.S. government thinks Beijing could be tapping into DJI drones for espionage.

Bottom line: DJI’s facing headwinds, but it still controls 77% of the U.S. drone market with no American competitor in sight.