Introduction to the LayerDrone Network

The LayerDrone Network addresses key challenges in geospatial data collection by creating a decentralized platform for high-resolution drone imagery, organized into a standardized network.

Leveraging widely available drone technology and the blockchain for data verification and reward distributions, the LayerDrone Protocol ensures accessibility, quality, and frequent updates across all captured imagery.

Fundamentally, the LayerDrone Protocol issues tokenized rewards for pilots who capture imagery in specified missions, which consist of an automated flight pattern over approximately 25-acre hexagons (spexigons) that cover the world. Pilots travel to the spexigon and capture aerial imagery in accordance with the LayerDrone Protocol specifications, then upload captured imagery to the LayerDrone Network. Pilots can use tokens earned to reserve future missions, sell them via a third-party marketplace, or use them to access the underlying imagery.

As of April 2025, the LayerDrone Network had over 2 million acres of high-resolution imagery, hundreds of active pilot contributors, and spexigons flown in over 160 cities.

This data supports diverse use cases, from training spatial AI models and enabling complex AR/VR applications to empowering government agencies that need aerial imagery and supporting real estate developers evaluating site conditions. A major innovation lies in LayerDrone Network’s standardized data, which meets the demanding requirements of AI model training, enabling the development of large spatially-aware AI models to interpret Earth’s geography and generate insights critical for industries.