Medicine delivered by drones 🤯

INNOVATION NEWS

Amazon’s Sky-High Ambition: Drones Now Delivering Health to Your Doorstep

Amazon’s ambitious Prime Air drone service has had its fair share of turbulence since its initiation. A decade in, and the program was still fluttering with restricted operations in merely two regions. However, a fresh gust of activity seems to have rejuvenated the service. Amazon, the tech behemoth, recently unveiled its plans to drone-deliver medicines from Amazon Pharmacy, its digital prescription drug store, promising a swift 60-minute doorstep delivery. The inaugural city to enjoy this high-flying service is College Station, Texas.

Even though the service is branded "Prime", Amazon clarifies that it's not exclusive to its Prime membership holders. The cherry on top? This futuristic delivery option is currently free. Of the vast catalog of Amazon Pharmacy, around 500 medications, spanning from flu remedies to asthma treatments, are eligible for this aerial delivery.

While College Station pioneers this service, other cities may have to wait with bated breath. Amazon remains tight-lipped about future expansion plans. However, speculations are rife, considering cities like Austin, Indianapolis, Miami, Phoenix, and Seattle have already experienced Amazon’s same-day Pharmacy delivery service.

Dr. Vin Gupta, the chief medical officer of Amazon Pharmacy, emphasized the pivotal role of time in medical treatment. He remarked, “Early intervention can be crucial to enhancing patient results, and drone delivery considerably bridges the diagnosis-to-treatment gap.”

This aviation leap isn’t just about patient convenience but also hints at a strategic business maneuver. Traditional delivery trucks come with a hefty price tag - from staffing costs to vehicular operations and insurance. Drone delivery, in comparison, seems economically and logistically streamlined.

The current drone delivery base in College Station operates closely with a newly opened pharmacy. Every medication parcel is meticulously overseen by an onsite pharmacist before being entrusted to a drone. This synergy may hint at a prospective collaboration where Amazon could provide similar services to pharmacies outside its corporate umbrella.

In a world where immediacy is paramount, Amazon's venture into drone-medical deliveries is both timely and revolutionary. See announcement here 

The Next Smart Home Staple

Where were you when Amazon acquired Ring for $1B? Or when Google bought Nest for a cool $3.2B?

Hopefully, you were invested in those promising startups. But for those that missed out, the next groundbreaking Smart Home innovation has arrived 一 RYSE.

Their automated window shade tech is now launching in Best Buy stores, and is poised to dominate the fast-growing Smart Shades market. They’ve also just launched a new investment round and their share price has already grown 25% from their last round!

The Smart Shades race is on, and RYSE is in pole position due to their:

Unmatched Features: RYSE has the only retrofit design to motorize existing window shades, and can be seamlessly controlled by voice, smartphone, or schedule.

Smart Price: Priced at $169 vs. competitors’ pricing of up to $1,000 per window, RYSE is uniquely positioned to bring luxury window shades to every home and business.

The exclusive public offering closes this month - learn more here.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

How The World's Largest Aircraft Boneyard Stores 3,100 Planes

The Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group stores thousands of retired military, forest service, and NASA aircraft in the Arizona desert. The massive collection of F-16s, C-5s, B-52s, A-4 Skyhawks, and others would be the world's second largest air force. But the planes don't just come here to die. Parts are reclaimed and entire planes are regenerated so they can go back into service.

TRUCKING NEWS

Convoy Hits a Speed Bump: Tech-Driven Trucking Startup On The Rocks

Convoy, a digital freight powerhouse founded by ex-Amazon.com executives, has ceased its operations temporarily. This drastic decision, as insiders suggest, comes as the firm contemplates alternatives that might encompass selling its proprietary technology.

Last year, Convoy secured a whopping $260 million in funding, propelling its valuation to an impressive $3.8 billion. However, the firm announced to its employees via an email on Wednesday that it will no longer be taking in shipments for the time being. Moreover, there's a looming uncertainty about the existing loads, with many being rescheduled or outright canceled.

A once-thriving business, Convoy, has witnessed a sharp decline in freight demand over the previous year. Presently, it's in discussions about potentially selling its teams, software, or intellectual assets.

Convoy's technological prowess lies in its ability to efficiently match available trucks to loads. It emerged as a trailblazer among the tech-driven companies, aiming to enhance the efficiency of freight marketplaces over the past decade. The platform boasts a clientele of renowned names such as Home Depot, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, and Anheuser-Busch.

The startup's impressive list of early investors includes Microsoft's Bill Gates, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, and even U2's Bono and The Edge. As of April 2022, Convoy's Series E funding round declaration highlighted its technology's capability to connect freight brokers and shippers to nearly 400,000 trucks in the shipping sector’s spot market.

However, the digital freight industry has been hit hard. Startups in the sector initially thrived, especially during pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions. Yet, the subsequent 18 months witnessed dwindling shipping demand, plunging freight rates, and constricting venture capital inflows.

As an illustration, New York's Transfix postponed a merger last year, and international player Flexport is grappling to regain profitability. Sadly, Convoy too has felt the burn, cutting its workforce from approximately 1,500 to a mere 500 within the last year and a half. See full article here

SHIPWRECK OF THE WEEK ⚓️☠️ 

GLOBAL TRADE SNIPPETS

Ex-Walmart CEO Says US Consumers Reaching 'Breaking Point'. Political polarization, inflation, and high interest rates—were all working together to undermine consumers and their propensity to spend.

China’s exporters optimistic as foreign buyers flock to see products at Canton Fair in Guangzhou: Participants, organisers report increased booth count and attendance for major trade fair, which opened on Sunday. Purchasers drawn to competitive prices and favourable exchange rates as they seek to restock inventory.

Russia has destroyed almost 300,000 metric tons of grain since July in attacks on Ukraine's port facilities and on ships, the Ukrainian government said on Friday, underscoring the war's threat to global food security.

‘The tsunami just keeps coming’: Europe’s growing cocaine market : Customs officials face losing battle as €10bn cocaine trade leads to dramatic increase in violent crime in north-west Europe.

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