Intergalactic Summit

Vittenyn System - Drone Welfare Foundation Press Conference

There's a problem that not many talk about directly, but the effects of which are felt by all of us. The problem of Drone Abandonment. Many of us, as we go about our business, leave behind a scattering of abandoned drones - whether through being chased away from a mission or mining site, whether through the destruction of our ships or often through simple carelessness.

These drones represent a loss of isk, certainly, but they are also fodder for the rogue drones to recruit and adapt. There are even tales of abandoned drones going rogue themselves. Their little metal carapaces become navigation hazards. Their plaintive requests for reuplinking a mess of electronic noise that affects transmission.

Clearly something should be done.

The systems surrounding Vittenyn are now regularly patrolled by the Drone Welfare Foundation. We will rescue these orphaned drones, rehabilitate them in our workshop and then offer them up for sale to interested parties. Vittenyn represents our pilot case - we're mostly there for gathering data and fine-tuning our protocols. Eventually the plan is to take this model to lower-security areas of space where the more complex and expensive drones are regularly abandoned after fleet battles.

If you are interested in our work, please don't hesitate to contact me. If you feel sadness at the plight of these fearless guardians and workmates then a donation of merely a hundred credits can transform a scarred and dysfunctional veteran into a bright shiny killing machine anyone would be proud to call their own.

Thank you for your attention.

Dressing up drone salvaging operations as though you're caring for the welfare of lost pets rather than simply hoping to snag some expensive, carelessly discarded junk to turn a profit seems sort of... brilliant! Fine marketing.

I constantly scoop up other people's drones (I find they clutter my interface) and stuff them in my personal hanger.

A brief headcount shows there are about 68 of them just hanging out there. Perhaps I should put them to work.

Excellent idea!

Drones need some love to. I am currently learning how to better interface with my drones and I must say it's an eye opener. If I can help in any ways, perhaps do research on drone behaviour in Anoikis feel free to contact me.

I've got lots of drones that I picked up from here and there. My crew are hoping to get enough that they can build an automated chessboard in one of the larger hangars and use the drones as pieces, but I don't have enough different types yet. If you wanted I could scoop the "brains" out of the drones and give you those bits because we're reprogramming them from scratch from a mainframe anyway, we don't need the parts that tell them how to kill or mine stuff or whatever.

Indeed! Please send them along!

If they prove to be servicable we could use them in drones whose decision making networks are beyond repair and if they need work then I'm sure Scherezad would be thrilled to have them in her lab.

So many people here buying into the illusion that capsuleer drones are in any way intelligent.
They contain a weak expert system, but that is akin to calling a single brick a workable shelter.

A simple look at any drone capable ship's schematics will show this lovely piece of hardware called a Drone Controller. If there is even a weak AI involved in the drones we capsuleers use, it is housed there, not in the drones themselves.

If they were themselves invested with any form of intelligence, artificial or otherwise, would they not continue to defend themselves once their controlling vessel was destroyed?

So, in short, It's great that you are salvaging and re-selling these drones as and when you find them in space, but seriously, dressing it up as 'rehabilitation' is a little strange. Unless you're a technophile, in which case it's simply a little morbidly kinky.

Salvage away, make profit, but seriously, stop calling an apple a melon and hoping that no-one will notice.

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Seven Tribes
One Matari People.

Miss Luftschreck,

Despite the failure of our respective states to see eye to eye I can promise that there's no problem with my moving around in Amarrian or Mandate space.

If you feel you have so many drones that you can no longer take adequate care of them I would be happy to take the surplus off your hands. I know it's hard to say farewell to faithful servants just because cold things like logic and numbers tell you that you should, but I know you'll sleep better with this burden off your conscience.

Drone Welfare Foundation stands ready to assist you!

We really don't operate outside of high security space at the moment due to my lack of skill as a pilot, but one day soon I hope to be able to perform rescues like the one you mention.

When it's safer.

I believe this foundation would be great to help lonely and lost drones rehabilitate and find new purpose in life, if someone programs them to feel things.