On Saturday, April 26, 2025, the University of California, Berkeley hosted the first-ever Bay Area Drone Fest (BAD-F-1) — a landmark gathering designed to unite researchers, technologists, and industry leaders advancing the future of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The event welcomed over 80 participants and featured 35 presentations spanning fundamental research, advanced simulation, real-world applications, autonomous controls, scalable manufacturing, and education in drone technology.
Attendees represented a robust cross-section of the region’s innovation ecosystem, including faculty and students from UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Merced, UC Santa Cruz, Stanford University, and representatives from NASA and several private drone companies. Topics ranged from aerodynamics and propulsion to AI-based navigation systems and agricultural mapping, with sessions organized around six key themes:
- Fundamentals: aerodynamics, thermal analysis, structural dynamics
- Simulation: machine learning, LiDAR, onboard computing, digital twins
- Applications: fire-fighting, agriculture, defense, and industrial inspection
- Controls: autonomy, power systems, navigation, sensing
- Manufacturing: 3D printing, scale-up methods, and cost analysis
- Education: training models, access, and outreach strategies
The event fostered open dialogue and new collaborations across institutions and sectors. Looking ahead, organizers announced that next year’s Drone Fest will expand significantly and move to the UC Richmond Field Station, where it will feature live demonstrations and field testing in addition to presentations.
For more information or to get involved in the 2026 Bay Area Drone Fest, please contact Professor Tarek I. Zohdi, Director of the Richmond Field Station and Associate Dean for Research in the College of Engineering: zohdi@berkeley.edu.