Delhivery to create revenue stream from its drone delivery tech in FY23-24: CEO

Delhivery: Delhivery completes acquisition of Algorhythm Tech. The logistics company has completed the acquisition of Algorhythm Tech. With this, Algorhythm has become a wholly owned subsidiary of the company w.e.f. January 13, 2023.

Gurugram-based logistics company, Delhivery, is evaluating plans to monetise the unique intellectual property (IP) that it developed for its drones in the financial year 2023-24, the company’s founder and CEO Sahil Barua said during the earnings call on Saturday.

“We are evaluating other possible revenue streams for the IP that we have created, and we will look at other markets to see whether this IP can be monetised. I think that is something that we will do in the financial year 2023-24,” said Barua.

The company is waiting for approvals and clarity on the norms of using drones for delivery from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Delhivery decided to enter the drone technology space following the acquisition of US-based Transition Robotics Inc, ahead of its initial public offering (IPO) that took place in May 2022.

“In India, what we are doing is testing out the drone capabilities we have, and transferring the technology, drones have to be manufactured in India to be used in India. We have done trials so far with the approval of the regulators both national and local. As the policy from DGCA becomes more clear we will definitely use this mode for delivery,” Barua added.

Delhivery was preparing to start drone delivery trials in the country in 2021. The company had signed an agreement with the cargo division of Spicejet, SpiceXpress, earlier this year to build drone delivery capabilities.

The two companies — SpiceXpress and Delhivery — have formed one of the consortiums shortlisted by the DGCA to conduct trials on Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drones in India.

Commercial operations of drones in India are still at their nascent stage. In 2022, food delivery firm Swiggy had planned to enter the drone-as-a-service (DaaS) market for its grocery service - Instamart. The operations are still at the pilot stage and awaiting approvals.

Delhivery reported a net loss of Rs 195.7 crore for the third quarter of FY23 (2022-23) against a net loss of Rs 127 crore a year earlier, the company said in a stock exchange filing on February 10. Its operating revenue fell to Rs 1,823.8 crore for October-December 2022 from Rs 2,019 crore a year earlier.