Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) today announced a significant advancement for Drone as First Responder (DFR) programs with the ability to dispatch a drone when an officer signals an emergency on their APX NEXT smart radio. The company’s technology integrations with BRINC and SkySafe, strategic alliances announced earlier this year, accelerate aerial intelligence for first responders in the field while providing the command center with comprehensive drone detection capabilities unified in CommandCentral Aware.

"An APX NEXT radio is an officer’s lifeline and beacon that can now request a drone payload or aerial support from command when the officer is in distress," said Jeremiah Nelson, corporate vice president, Motorola Solutions. “Command staff now has a premier, centralized hub to manage their airspace on a single pane of glass, where they can direct their DFR missions, view unauthorized drones and seamlessly share drone intelligence across the entire team in the incident response workflow.”

An officer activating the emergency button on their APX NEXT radio triggers a mission in CommandCentral Aware, and a BRINC Responder drone can take flight to the officer’s location – or projected location in a foot or vehicle pursuit. In parallel, the company’s public safety AI assistant, Assist, can analyze adjacent information sources such as the live transcript of the officer’s radio traffic to flag pertinent information, including keywords like 'heart attack,' to provide additional vital intelligence. The drone can carry a potentially life-saving payload, like a defibrillator, EpiPen or flotation device, while streaming video footage back to command and other responders heading to the scene to better inform their response.

Through an integration with SkySafe, a leading provider of SaaS-based drone detection and airspace intelligence, agencies gain real-time visibility into drone activity. As drone incidents increase across critical infrastructure, borders, airports and major events, effective detection paired with advanced analytics and forensic tools has become critical for investigating incidents, supporting prosecutions and maintaining secure airspace.

Motorola Solutions will demonstrate these BRINC and SkySafe drone integrations at the 2025 International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) conference, October 18-21 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver. Visit Motorola Solutions and SkySafe at booth #741 and BRINC at booth #1663. Follow along at #IACP2025.