INVOLI's 550 Receivers Land a Low-Altitude Surveillance Network for Drones

The problem with flying a drone beyond the pilot's line of sight isn't the drone. It's the airplane you can't see. For the nascent drone economy to scale, operators need a real-time picture of low-altitude air traffic, a layer of surveillance that traditional radar and air traffic control systems were never designed to provide. INVOLI, a Swiss startup founded in 2017, is building that picture one ground receiver at a time. Its VistaTrack network, now live with over 550 receivers across major U.S. cities, aims to be the foundational data layer for safe, scalable drone operations [involi.com, Unknown].

The Hardware Wedge

INVOLI's bet is that reliable low-altitude surveillance requires a dedicated hardware footprint. While software-only UTM (Unmanned Traffic Management) platforms can manage flight plans and deconfliction, they lack a direct, real-time feed of aircraft position data below 500 feet. INVOLI's proprietary G-1090 receiver is its wedge into the market. These Swiss-made units are deployed as a distributed sensor network, picking up signals from manned aircraft including ADS-B, UAT, and, in selected zones, MLAT tracking of Mode S transponders down to 200 feet above ground level [unmannedairspace.info, Unknown]. This raw data is the input for INVOLI's software services.

The company sells both the hardware and the data it generates. For drone operators and UTM providers, the value is access to a certified data stream that can be integrated via dashboard, API, or directly into ground control software. The core proposition is risk mitigation: by demonstrating awareness of nearby manned traffic, drone operators can build stronger safety cases for regulatory approvals like the Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA) required for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights [airport-suppliers.com, Unknown].

A Network Grows in Texas

INVOLI's most significant deployment to date is its Low Altitude Surveillance Supplemental Data Service (SDS) covering over 10,000 square kilometers of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area [globalairspaceradar.com, Unknown]. Launched in early 2024, this service is offered free through the INVOLI.live web platform, providing real-time visualization of air traffic for the region [GovTech, April 2024]. This move serves a dual purpose. It establishes INVOLI's technical capability as a SDS provider, a critical role in formal UTM architectures. It also functions as a large-scale proof of concept, demonstrating network reliability and data quality to potential enterprise customers and regulators.

The VistaTrack network has since expanded beyond Texas. INVOLI reports receivers are now active in Charlotte, Orlando, Tampa, Syracuse, New York City, San Jose, and San Francisco [suasnews.com, June 2025]. This geographic spread is strategic, targeting early-adopter drone markets and major urban centers where airspace complexity is highest. The company's participation in the GENIUS NY accelerator in Syracuse further cemented its U.S. operational roots [GENIUS NY, Unknown].

The Team and Early Backing

INVOLI was founded by Emanuele Lubrano and Cristina Mihalachioiu. Lubrano, the CEO, studied at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), a hub for technical innovation. Mihalachioiu handles legal and communications, bringing a background in banking, finance, and M&A to the startup [Crunchbase, Unknown]. Both are listed as inventors on patents assigned to the company [patents.justia.com, Unknown]. The team is small, estimated at under 25 employees, with a focus on engineering and deployment [ZoomInfo, Unknown].

Public funding records are sparse, pointing to a lean operation. A seed round of approximately $500,000 was reported in 2018 [agefi.com, Unknown]. This capital structure suggests a capital-efficient, hardware-focused build-out, likely supplemented by project revenue and accelerator support. The company is also a member of the Swiss U-Space Implementation, a national program led by aviation authorities to integrate drones into airspace, providing a regulatory sandbox and potential early customers [startup.ch, Unknown].

Seed (2018) | 0.5 | M USD

Technical Breakdown and Scale Risks

The technical premise is sound. A distributed network of receivers using proven protocols like ADS-B is a reliable method for detecting cooperative aircraft. INVOLI's value-add is in the aggregation, filtering, and low-latency delivery of that data as a service. The system's effectiveness, however, is bounded by the limitations of the underlying signals. It cannot track aircraft that are not emitting a transponder signal, a known gap in general aviation surveillance.

Scaling the network presents the primary operational challenge. Each new city requires capital expenditure for hardware, site acquisition, installation, and maintenance. The business model must therefore support high upfront costs before recurring data revenue scales. Furthermore, as a supplemental service, INVOLI's fate is tied to the adoption speed of BVLOS regulations and the commercial drone market itself. If that market evolves slowly, the capital intensity of building a nationwide network could become a burden.

• Capital Intensity. Deploying and maintaining hundreds of hardware units across continents requires significant ongoing investment. The undisclosed funding since 2018 raises questions about the war chest for a full U.S. build-out.
• Regulatory Dependency. Revenue is contingent on regulators mandating or encouraging the use of supplemental data services for BVLOS flights. Progress varies widely by jurisdiction.
• Competitive Moats. While INVOLI has first-mover advantage in building a dedicated low-altitude network, competitors like uAvionix and AirMap have deep aviation roots and alternative approaches, such as installing surveillance capabilities directly on drones or leveraging existing aviation infrastructure.

The sober assessment is that INVOLI is betting on a future that is still being defined. Its early network is a credible technical achievement and a necessary piece of infrastructure. The company's next twelve months will be about converting that technical proof into commercial contracts with enterprise drone operators and UTM platform providers, proving that the market is ready to pay for the eyes it needs to see the sky.

Sources

1. [involi.com, Unknown] INVOLI | Real-Time Air Traffic Surveillance & Advanced Receivers | https://www.involi.com/
2. [GovTech, April 2024] INVOLI’s New Drone Surveillance Program Gets Off the Ground | https://www.govtech.com/biz/involis-new-drone-surveillance-program-gets-off-the-ground
3. [unmannedairspace.info, Unknown] INVOLI VistaTrack | https://www.unmannedairspace.info/supplier-news/involi-announces-vistatrack-the-worlds-largest-bvlos-surveillance-network-now-live-in-major-u-s-cities/
4. [airport-suppliers.com, Unknown] INVOLI.live platform improves BVLOS flight authorization chances | https://www.airport-suppliers.com/supplier_news/involi-live-platform-improves-bvlos-flight-authorization-chances/
5. [globalairspaceradar.com, Unknown] INVOLI Provides World’s First Low Altitude Surveillance Supplemental Data Service | https://www.globalairspaceradar.com/involi-provides-worlds-first-low-altitude-surveillance-supplemental-data-service/
6. [suasnews.com, June 2025] INVOLI Announces VistaTrack, World’s Largest BVLOS Surveillance Network | https://www.suasnews.com/2025/06/involi-announces-vistatrack-worlds-largest-bvlos-surveillance-network/
7. [GENIUS NY, Unknown] GENIUS NY Cohort 8 Reflections: INVOLI Builds U.S. Momentum | https://geniusny.com/genius-ny-cohort-8-reflections-involi-builds-u-s-momentum-with-strategic-support-and-syracuse-roots/
8. [Crunchbase, Unknown] INVOLI - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/involi
9. [patents.justia.com, Unknown] Inventors for INVOLI SA | https://patents.justia.com/assignee/involi-sa
10. [ZoomInfo, Unknown] INVOLI SA Company Profile | https://www.zoominfo.com/c/involi-sa/461674084
11. [agefi.com, Unknown] agefi.com article on INVOLI funding | Source URL not captured
12. [startup.ch, Unknown] INVOLI part of Swiss U-Space Implementation | https://www.startup.ch/en/companies/involi