Highlights:
- Soar is a decentralised platform for the distribution of drone content using state-of-the-art blockchain technology
- Soar intends to build a super-map of the world at an unprecedented level of detail
- Alibaba Cloud will be offering cloud hosting and computing power services to users once the platform is launched
- The mapping technology behind Soar was developed as a parallel system for use in various applications and industries ranging from mining, agriculture through to security and defense.
- Soar will raise up to $US20 million to fund the commercialisation of its global marketplace platform
- The worldwide market for drone usage is expected to be worth a massive $127B by 2025
June 21, 2018 - Leading Australian geospatial mapping technology company Soar has announced their highly anticipated Token Generation Event (TGE) designed to fund the launch of the world’s first decentralised global platform for the distribution of drone content and maps.
The TGE will be facilitated by an international consortium of blockchain advisors including Fidem and Digital Capital Management. The Soar TGE is expected to raise up to US$20 million through the sale of its SKYM token and has already secured several cornerstone investments from technology funds including Lateral Capital Ventures, Peregrine Corporate, Alium Capital and Otsana Capital.
Soar’s stage 1 is the initiation of its global drone content marketplace platform, which company founder and CEO, Amir Farhand believes will be the go-to place for almost any content that drones produce at both consumer and commercial levels.
Amir Farhand said: “Both professional and hobbyist drone operators will be able to monetise unused content, the majority of which are sitting on old hard drives and forgotten. We have already onboarded over 450 drone operators globally, and we are just scratching the surface of this opportunity.”
Soar’s mapping platform looks to advance the business models used by Getty Images and Shutterstock, by placing the marketplace on the blockchain and leveraging underlying mapping technology which Soar currently employs for use in various applications and industries ranging from mining, agriculture through to security and defense.
“The provenance of the technology behind Soar actually came from our work in different niche industry sectors, and it has given us the fulcrum to take Soar to the masses. However, the genesis of all this towards everyday applications and the betterment of humanity is immense and inspires myself and my team”.
Soar’s platform is intended to provide an easy-to-use home for drone content, with a broad range of applications in industries such as agriculture, environmental, logistics, insurance and even news and media. In addition, the Soar platform will integrate with several global technology giants including the Alibaba Cloud, a key provider of cloud hosting and computing power services.
Leveraging the power of the Alibaba Cloud, the Soar platform is expected to pave the way for Soar’s Stage 2 project: the world’s first fully decentralised global super-map protocol.
Amir Farhand said: “What we are setting out on doing with Soar is to build a compelling solution for not only drone technology but in fact the greater mapping community, with a primary focus on decentralisation and community engagement.”
“The blockchain further enhances this by encouraging both accountability and authenticity. Our end game is to build a dynamic super-map of the world at an unprecedented level of detail through the aggregation of crowdsourced drone content.”
With over a billion monthly views, Google Maps is one of the most significant sources of geographic data and has ultimately become the first universal map. However, as concerns continue to rise over the risks associated with any centralised private organisation controlling and owning such significant public data, the value and demand for the decentralised ownership of such powerful and vital content is set to continue. An industry snapshot released by PwC and Bloomberg, recently stated that the drone industry would be worth a massive $127B by 2025.