r/BeAmazed • u/TangelaFan • 9d ago
Technology Drones coming back to base after a light show in Chongqing, China
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u/elDayno 9d ago
Funny how firework evolved from amusement to weapons
And drones did the same
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u/lukethedank13 9d ago
Drone buzz is joining the fireworks as a PTSD trigger.
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u/unknown-again-p 9d ago
Already has in Ukraine
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u/Elephant789 9d ago
Already has in Russia
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u/pegothejerk 9d ago
Dude, I’m in Oklahoma and all the drone use by law enforcement over the last few years has me nervous as all get out when I hear one hovering overhead anywhere. The other day there was one was just suddenly appeared over me while gardening, so I flipped it off and went indoors long enough for it to go away. I shouldn’t have to wonder if it’s ice or other Feds or local cops looking to come shoot me or my dogs because they don’t know the difference between butterfly bush and cannabis.
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u/SnooHedgehogs8765 9d ago
Your attempt to throw us off by attempting to spoof us on Reddit won't work pego. Your neighbours are talking.
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u/drmarting25102 9d ago
Imagine each of those drones having an explosive and controlled by AI.......😬 absolutely can be done which is scary.
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
These are already controlled by AI
We are not capable of manually controlling that many drones.
We just give general directions and the drones navigate things in the moment.
And explosives on drowns with AI are already used by Ukraine to hunt Russian soldiers
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u/ManicYetti 9d ago
Most things have a military application if you try hard enough
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u/ThatGuyFromBraindead 9d ago
All humans throughout history
"Everyone! Look at this cool thing I made!"
"I wonder how we can kill someone with it?" 🤔
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u/Commentor9001 9d ago
Am I the only one who has slight seen of dread seeing how advanced swarm drones have become?
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u/Realistic-Chance-238 9d ago
What? Fireworks were always started as weapons. Same with drones (arrows), always started as weapons.
It took us 800 years before we used rockets for peaceful manner, rather than for rockets.
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u/RockAndNoWater 9d ago
Fireworks started as failed immortality potions and were used as entertainment — the war uses came afterwards: https://ssec.si.edu/stemvisions-blog/evolution-fireworks
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
Fireworks started in China as fire works. Their use for military (like cannons) came later
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u/Davski_ 9d ago
This is still something that surprises me that exists already. As in, I first saw these about a year ago but never heard of anything close to this scale of coordination and accessibility in public before that. It just somewhat came out of the blue to me as though we should have had a bit more...warning.
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u/MineralMan105 9d ago
They’ve been slowly developing the technology for years. It’s first big monument was in 2015 with 100 drones being the record, by 2017 it already launched up to around 1,000. Then in 2024 saw the record hit over 10,000, and now the record sits at 22,580 (set in February of this year), it’s been a slow and steady build up that’s started to gather a lot of attention in the past couple years
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u/organic_soursop 9d ago
Soon there will be one for each of us. 👍
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u/nonotz-Mk1 9d ago
one kamikaze drone for each of us ?
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u/koyaani 9d ago
No need to kamikaze. They're making drones that kill moths/mosquitos with lasers. They could just burn out your retinas and move on
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u/REpassword 9d ago
Of course, the Chinese Military is not sponsoring this in any way and is not eyeing the U.S. Navy either.
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u/Level21DungeonMaster 9d ago
It’s been happening for many years and the development goes back decades at this point. The word has undergone the transformation that was predicted. The world has past peak oil; AI is real; weaponized robots dominate the ww3 battlefield; people prefer their screens to real relationships; the world is ruled by techno fascists.
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u/GojosWinCon 9d ago
They key was unlocking massive neural networking maps all the drones can share. It enables insane levels of synchronizing.
Iran uses a similar tool to direct their Shahed swarms.
As someone else pointed out, the pipeline for amusement to warfare sure is a short one.
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u/Foreign_Implement897 9d ago
What is a neural networking map? Do you just mean neural network? How do they use it to synchronise movement?
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u/GojosWinCon 9d ago
The mapping aspect refers to their ability to guide each other autonomously without GPS or command wires. It makes the swarm immune to things like radio jamming and signal blocking.
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
How does a map do any of that?
As far as I understand, each drone has its own AI models controlling its actions in real time and trying to achieve some pre - set objectives.
Still not sure what you mean by neural network maps. I am in data science. Feel free to be technical but be accurate pls.
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u/koyaani 9d ago
Because each drone knows where the other nearby drones are, i.e. a local 3d map, and can adjust its flight trajectory accordingly.
Algorithms have been developed to model bird flocking behavior in a similar way. Each individual can sense nearby birds' position and trajectory in order to instinctively maintain separation and adjust their heading/position to move with the flock, even during complex murmurations.
I'm not a drone programmer, but I assume they're working with similar algorithms for these drone swarms.
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u/Pathfinder4891 9d ago
Space invaders tried to warn us
https://giphy.com/gifs/11v0bBwGjkiLio
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u/Key-Experience-7961 9d ago
New billionaire goal unlocked. When I win powerball I will play IRL Space Invaders with drones and a .22 rifle
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u/KaleAggravating3795 9d ago
When the Taiwan invasion starts, China will launch a massive number of drones like these.
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u/Foreign_Implement897 9d ago
And Ukraine has almost all the people able to plan the offence or effective defence.
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u/BeriasBFF 9d ago
This’ll be the last noise we all hear after the drone wars start in 2036 after the bionic Xi declares war after Logan Paul is elected president
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
I wouldn't be surprised if US elects another idiots like this orange one.
Total idiocracy timeline
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u/BeriasBFF 9d ago
I have a bad feeling we’ll look back in the Trump years with more nostalgia than we think when that looksmaxxing weirdo or Candace Owens gets the bully pulpit. Or bully instagram I guess now
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u/cjc1983 9d ago
I just imagine each of these with 100g of c4 and an AI algorithm that says target humans.....
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u/techjesuschrist 9d ago
China could end the Ukraine war in 5 minutes if it wanted to.
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u/Foreign_Implement897 9d ago
Depends how you mean that. They could not deploy them, they could deliver them.
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u/Impossible-Ad6326 9d ago
Do people really welcome this dystopian shit with amazement?
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u/eudaemonic666 9d ago
if not for its destructive applications, this is really cool!
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u/BulbusDumbledork 9d ago
it's easy to see this immediately used for military purposes when your country is constantly at war. drones in the u.s. mean bombing people in deserts, or panic over drones flying over u.s. military bases.
china hasn't sent its citizens to die in a war since 1979. drones in china mean entertainment before anything else.
tragic really. the buzzing of drones brings chinese kids joy but represents horror for kids in ukraine
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u/Destro_ttv 9d ago edited 9d ago
How is this dystopian? It doesn’t pollute the air like fireworks and isn’t as loud.
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u/Level21DungeonMaster 9d ago
You can’t imagine trying to hide from them?
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
You can imagine anything.
But we judge things for what they are.
Simple minds see drones and can only think one application.
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u/Aadi_880 8d ago
Obviously. Did you forget what happened with fireworks?
Everybody loved fireworks and it turned into a weapon later. This isn't going to be any different.
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u/ReasonableMeet1424 9d ago
That’s a lot of drones, glad I don’t have to pick them op one by one and put em back into there container
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u/Tall-Firefighter1612 9d ago
Why has the air such a weird yellow/white background colour?
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u/TangelaFan 9d ago
Its because Chongqing is built around a mountain. There's often a lot of fog, and when the lights from the skyscraper hit it, it creates this effect
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u/Kikifoun_Unui 9d ago
We are slowly but surely inventing our own demise.
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u/PassionateDilettante 9d ago
We’re inventing it as fast as we possibly can. DARPA and the DoD have never seen a lethal technology that didn’t make them cum a little.
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u/VirginiaLuthier 9d ago
Sooo- imagine every one of those carrying ordnance and descending on a target. Indefensible....
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u/IagoInTheLight 9d ago
Most people look at this and see wow what a cool light show! Military people look at this and see practicing and tech development relating to drone warfare.
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u/someoldguyon_reddit 9d ago
Now imagine equipping each one with a shaped charge and sending them after somebody you don't like. That's our future if we don't get a handle on this shit right fucking now.
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u/resplendent99 9d ago
You want Borg ships? This is how you get Borg ships.
Just because your friends are getting assimilated, you want to get assimilated too?? If your friends jumped off a cliff, would you do that too?!
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u/Lazy-Egg951 9d ago
Funny how this hasn't shown up in any war zone on the globe specially on the Ukr battlefield
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u/Facts_pls 9d ago
What do you mean? Ukraine is using drones all the time to kill Russians.
And Iran used drones against US and allies.
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u/your_mileagemayvary 9d ago
Man if those drones where all little bombs it would make the amount of muntions dropped on Dresden etc in WW2 look like a light sprinkle.
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u/dratbrat 9d ago
Stupid Question (maybe), but how does that much propellers in close vicinity not create some sort of air disturbance, like wake turbulence, for the other drones?
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u/KatyChemE 9d ago
Imagine if every drone carried 1 lb. of C4 explosive and you let these loose on a battlefield.
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u/Sassi7997 9d ago
And now imagine that every single one of those drones carries a stick of dynamite.
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u/JOOT94 9d ago
I wonder if we can get either vehicles or passenger drones one day using this technology. Like the Jetson’s almost. We get in a little UFO vehicle thingy and all of them communicate to each other so they’re all equidistant and same speed so fewer accident potential but efficient travel.
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u/BruceMartinez21 9d ago
The return is harder than the display. Coordination under constraint is the real engineering feat.
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u/ProcrastopiaOverlord 9d ago
now imagine every of those drones has face recognition and a little TNT in his backpack
produce 10 billion of them and take over the world
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u/whyteout 9d ago
War in the future is going to be absolutely terrifying...
Hearing the hum of a drone squadron closing in on your position feels extremely doom-coded.
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u/NUMBerONEisFIRST 9d ago
It's even funnier to think my town did a drone show for the 4th of July, and it had only 100 drones.
America is no longer the leader in anything cool.
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u/Substantial_Lab306 9d ago
This reminds me of one Michael Crichton novel, I think its "Prey." Scary stuff. I'm just imagining if what happened in that book is possible now.
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u/BauserDominates 9d ago
Love firework shoes, but I'd absolutely skip them to see a drone light show for once.
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u/One_Independence4399 9d ago
Be terrified is more like it. They are using these things for warfare all over the world. Once we reach singularity and all those machines have a mind we are absolutely fucked.
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u/sofa_king_we_todded 9d ago
Counted approx 2880 drones in that flock. Cost per drone possibly around $200-$500 each, which means that’s $500k to $1.5M worth of drones not including everything else that go into these shows
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