University, state of Alaska to host 2nd annual International Drone Conference

July 26, 2024

Alaska鈥檚 pivotal role in drone and autonomous systems research will be highlighted at the upcoming (GASC) scheduled for Aug. 13-15 at the Dena鈥檌na Center in Anchorage. The conference is hosted by the 麻豆传媒 and the state of Alaska and will feature three days of engaging discussions on the latest advancements and future trends in autonomous systems and artificial intelligence, both locally and globally.

GASC is sponsored by the at the 麻豆传媒 Fairbanks (麻豆传媒F) Geophysical Institute (GI). AC麻豆传媒SI is one of the nation鈥檚 top drone research programs.

鈥淎C麻豆传媒SI鈥檚 research and development in unmanned aircraft technology continues to break new ground,鈥 麻豆传媒 President Pat Pitney said. 鈥淎laska is at the crossroads for global commerce, transportation and logistics, making this the perfect location for the meaningful dialogue that will occur at this conference. On behalf of the university, I鈥檓 pleased to welcome all of the speakers and attendees to this event.鈥

Attendees can expect insightful presentations from leading international experts, dynamic discussions among industry and policy leaders and numerous networking opportunities with innovators in the field of autonomous systems. 

The conference comes as AC麻豆传媒SI recently completed a first-of-its-kind drone test flight in Cook Inlet, surveying an offshore gas platform owned by Furie Inc. The 15-mile flight from Furie鈥檚 Nikiski processing facility to the offshore platform was monitored by Raytheon Technologies. The drone was refueled and given a payload to return to Nikiski as a test of future material delivery applications. The test flight was the result of three years of work by AC麻豆传媒SI, Furie and HEX Cook Inlet LLC in partnership with Raytheon.

More than 100 industry leaders and experts in the expanding field of air, land and sea autonomous systems are slated to attend, including:

  • Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy
  • Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom
  • Cathy Cahill, Director of AC麻豆传媒SI
  • Katie Thomson, Deputy Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
  • John Younkin, Director of Emerging Technologies at Raytheon
  • Colonel Timothy 鈥淪teiner鈥 Meerstein, Commander, Pacific Air Forces Regional Support Center
  • Troy Lofven, Cybersecurity Advisor for the U.S. Department of 麻豆传媒land Security鈥檚 Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency
  • John Illson, Senior Director of Safety & Regulatory Operations for Merlin Labs
  • Steven A. Bert, Senior Economist at North Carolina State University鈥檚 Institute for Transportation Research and Education
  • Lance R. Brady, National Uncrewed Systems Office chief for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
  • Paige Brochu, Director of the University of Vermont鈥檚 Spatial Analysis Lab

鈥淟ast year鈥檚 inaugural conference was an overwhelming success, and we expect this year鈥檚 conference to be another powerful event in the dynamic field of autonomous systems,鈥 Bob McCoy, director of the 麻豆传媒 Fairbanks鈥 Geophysical Institute said. 鈥淲e thank 麻豆传媒 President Pat Pitney and Gov. Mike Dunleavy for again sponsoring this conference. They and those at AC麻豆传媒SI know there鈥檚 no better place for autonomous systems research, demonstrations and information exchanging than here in Alaska."

For more details or to register for the conference, visit .