Ring Drone Cam Drops Manual Controls to Rely Entirely on AI Autopilot Following On-Air Crashes
Ring's upcoming indoor camera drone will rely exclusively on its autonomous "AI Pilot" system, cutting manual controls entirely after prototype flight tests resulted in multiple crashes during a television broadcast.
When Ring releases its security camera drone in January, users will not have the option to pilot the device manually. The Ring Drone Cam will rely entirely on an "AI Pilot" system designed to navigate pre-programmed indoor patrol routes and autonomously steer around obstacles, omitting manual flight controls altogether.
The decision follows an awkward demonstration broadcast on CBS Mornings, where early manual control capabilities failed during a media segment.
On-Air Crashes Reveal Technical Glitches
During the broadcast, Ring founder Jamie Siminoff permitted CBS News technology reporter Jo Ling Kent to fly an early version of the drone manually using a mobile application featuring integrated flight controls. However, the trial resulted in two separate crashes.
According to CBS News, the drone's collision avoidance technology malfunctioned during the first attempt, leading to an impact. Ring declined to share the video recorded by the drone prior to that crash.
The second crash was captured live on camera. Footage showed the drone failing to respond to manual inputs before colliding directly with a wall. Siminoff explained that the second failure occurred because the aircraft lost its internet connection—a dependency required for both manual routing and autonomous flight functions.
"If it loses connectivity, it’s supposed to stop and land," Siminoff stated during the video segment. "It did not there."
Shift to Full AI Autonomy
While manual controls were tested at an earlier stage of product development, Ring confirmed it will not provide manual piloting options to consumers upon launch. In a demonstration provided to The Verge, Ring declined to showcase the mobile control app interface, confirming the hardware operates exclusively along pre-programmed flight paths.
Ring spokesperson Sam McGee addressed the shift toward full autonomy in a statement, emphasizing that the company explored various control configurations during development.
"We explored a lot of features throughout the development, but autonomous flight to patrol points using the AI Pilot is the best customer benefit and experience," McGee said.
