What’s the first thing you think about when you hear about drones?

For me, it’s been their use by the military - it’s been all over the news. But at the same time, drones are being used for plenty of peaceful and interesting purposes for humankind too.

What’s more, they’re already in action all over the world, saving lives, delivering food, and filming epic sh*t where most cameras don’t dare to go.

Here’s why I am OK with a drone-filled future:

I have seen firsthand that they can be used to solve problems that have stumped even the most innovative thinkers and designers…

Health in Foreign Lands

If you need to send immunizations to poor people in areas with no reliable forms of transportation, drones can assist. A new company called Matternet, which is backed by VC heavyweight firm Andreessen Horowitz, solves the problem of how to get needed medicine to people who don’t have roads and bridges. Can’t cross a tumultuous river in that Jeep of yours to deliver medicine? Now you don’t have to, as Matternet’s drones will fly from one destination to the next, delivering supplies to villagers in remote areas and recharging on solar light.

Search & Rescue Operations

If you need to find a person knocked unconscious in the frigid snows of Canada when his car goes off the road, drones can be a light in the darkness. A man in Canada lost control of his car and almost didn’t make it, due to icy temperatures. Good thing the Canadian police rescue team sent out a drone. Within minutes, a drone picked up this fortunate man’s heat signature, and he was rescued.

Improving Agricultural Quality and Productivity

Farmers benefit from drones, and since they grow our food, everyone benefits. They make sure their crops have sufficient water levels, and the right pesticides to protect your food through the use of drones can play a major role. Farmers have paid hundreds or even thousands of dollars per hour in the past to check on the quality of their crops from the air. Now with a drone, they simply fly over their turf and a job that would take hours or days takes minutes.

Drone Delivery Services

I can’t forget about all the delivery applications. Drones have dropped burritos from the sky, delivered sushi door to door, and dropped off packages in China. And Amazon.com is hoping to use drones to deliver packages in the U.S. as early as 2015.

Videography

Finally, I can’t forget how everybody from Paparazzi to Hollywood movie crews are getting in on the drone-filmed video action. That includes us at Hello Innovation. One of our main companies is Hello Aerial, which films incredible HD footage from the skies with our state-of-the-art drones and aerial team. Take a look at a video of our work here:

The point is, drones have come a long way from just being used for military reasons. They are capable of adding convenience to life, providing life-saving real-time feeds to first responders, and filming some amazing, dare-I-say badass video.

It’s time for us to take a more expansive view of how humans can use drones… whether for the greater good, for delivering packages, or just to film really awesome aerial footage. To see more Hello Aerial footage, please check out our YouTube channel.

And if you want to join a team where creativity, fun, and technology come together, check out our job openings.