🚁 PhD students retrofit helicopters so they can fly autonomously

Ph.D. students in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics are transforming conventional helicopters into autonomous flights. Flying small private helicopters carries more risk than one might think. Despite the high safety standards of commercial passenger planes, small aircraft, especially those engaged in activities like crop dusting, firefighting, and medical evacuations, experience annual fatalities.

Through their startup, Rotor Technologies, these students propose the solution of outfitting existing helicopters with a comprehensive set of sensors and software to automate some of the riskiest flights. To find out more about how this tech works, check out today's Must Read.

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Envision a safer sky—a new era in aviation marked by autonomous helicopters. This vision may be closer than you think, thanks to Rotor Technologies, a startup founded by MIT PhD students.

Rotor's autonomous helicopters, converted from decades-old, reliable models, surpass conventional battery-powered drones. Notably, they boast superior speed, extended flight durations, and increased payload capacity.

A new stamp-sized ultrasound sticker developed by MIT can help monitor organ stiffness and detect diseases and tumor progression. It works by sending sound waves through the skin and body, which then reflect off internal organs before returning to the sticker. Monitoring changes in rigidity could lead to early diagnosis of internal organ failure.

Apple is known for its "One More Thing" moments, unveiling a new product to revolutionize the industry. The Apple Vision Pro, the company's first augmented reality headset, was supposed to be one of those products. But according to a recent report, it might take Apple a few more years and a few more versions to achieve its vision.

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