Industrial work at height has always carried serious challenges. From building maintenance to inspection and surface preparation, the work often requires people to operate in difficult, elevated, and potentially hazardous environments.
Apellix is working to change that through software-driven aerial robotics. Featured on Buzzworthy Businesses with Printella Bankhead, Apellix represents a growing movement in manufacturing and technology: using advanced industrial drones to help reduce risk, improve efficiency, and rethink how essential infrastructure work gets done.
Meet Apellix
Apellix is a Jacksonville, Florida-based manufacturing company founded in 2014. The company designs and manufactures autonomous drones for power washing, spray painting, inspection, and building maintenance.
Led by CEO Robert Dahlstrom, Apellix focuses on what he describes as “working drones” — aerial robotic platforms built to perform practical industrial tasks. According to the company, Apellix’s Power Wash Drone is the most widely deployed commercial cleaning drone worldwide, with active operators in 21 countries and 5 continents as of 2026.
Apellix also has National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) compliant systems, employs disabled veterans, and is flown by the U.S. Army.
Why Aerial Robotics Matter for Industrial Safety
One of Apellix’s core goals is clear: removing humans from dangerous work at heights. In industries where workers may traditionally need lifts, scaffolding, rope access, or other elevated work methods, aerial robotics can offer a new way to approach difficult jobs.
By designing drones that can power wash, paint, inspect, and support building maintenance, Apellix is helping push the conversation beyond conventional drones. These systems are not simply flying cameras. They are software-driven tools designed to complete demanding tasks in industrial environments.
From Flying Devices to Working Platforms
Dahlstrom’s view is that “drones are just flying computers.” With the right sensors, data, and software, they can be engineered for highly specialized and practical uses. That perspective helps explain why Apellix is focused not only on aircraft design, but also on the software and control systems that make aerial robotics useful in real-world industrial settings.
The Challenge of Building Beyond Conventional Drone Capabilities
Developing advanced aerial robotic systems is not simple. Apellix’s biggest challenge is the extreme technical complexity of creating systems that operate beyond conventional drone capabilities.
At the same time, the company is working to disrupt entrenched industrial practices. Many industries have long-established ways of handling maintenance, cleaning, coating, and inspection. Introducing autonomous industrial drones requires not only innovation, but also persistence, education, and continued investment in research and development.
That persistence is central to Dahlstrom’s advice for others in the industry: “Be persistent, be persistent, be persistent.”
What Business Leaders Can Learn from Apellix
Apellix’s journey offers practical lessons for leaders, manufacturers, and technology companies building in complex markets.
1. Stay Mission-Driven
When asked how he motivates people to give their best, Dahlstrom said his team motivates him every day, and he tries to motivate them by reminding them of the company’s mission statement. For organizations tackling technically difficult problems, a clear mission can help people stay aligned when the work is challenging.
2. Build Technology That Solves Real Problems
Apellix’s work is grounded in practical industrial needs: cleaning, painting, inspection, and maintenance. The company’s focus on reducing dangerous work at heights gives its technology a clear purpose beyond innovation for innovation’s sake.
3. Be Careful Letting One Customer Define the Roadmap
Dahlstrom shared a valuable lesson from a “failed forward” moment: allowing a prospective customer to drive the product roadmap with repeated “if you just add this, we’ll buy” requests. The team continued building features, but the goalposts kept moving, and the purchase did not happen.
For growing companies, the lesson is important: customer feedback matters, but product strategy must remain grounded in a broader market need, not just one uncertain opportunity.
4. Surround Yourself with the Right People
When asked about obstacles and barriers to success, Dahlstrom pointed to the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people. He also noted that what makes him most proud is the people who have come together at Apellix to do meaningful work that creates economic value for customers and saves lives.
The Future of Industrial Drones and Aerial Robotics
Looking ahead, Apellix sees aerial robotics moving from specialized tools to mainstream industrial solutions over the next three to five years. Greater autonomy, endurance, and practical applications across multiple sectors are expected to shape that evolution.
For businesses in manufacturing, construction, facilities management, infrastructure, and industrial services, this shift is worth watching. The future of industrial drones is not only about flight; it is about applying robotics, software, sensors, and data to jobs that are difficult, repetitive, dangerous, or expensive to perform through traditional methods.
A Leadership Perspective Rooted in Purpose
Dahlstrom identifies his “why” as love for people. That purpose shows up in Apellix’s focus on reducing suffering, increasing happiness, and designing technology that can help save lives.
He also credits persistence, growth, and the pursuit of becoming the best version of himself as ongoing motivators. His proudest leadership moment was when his daughter, a Wall Street lawyer, joined the company full time as chief of staff.
Apellix on Buzzworthy Businesses with Printella Bankhead
Apellix is scheduled to appear on Buzzworthy Businesses with Printella Bankhead on Thursday, September 3, 2026, at 2:00 PM. The conversation highlights a company working at the intersection of manufacturing, robotics, software, and industrial safety.
As aerial robotics continue to evolve, Apellix offers a compelling example of how technology can be applied to real-world challenges — especially when the goal is to protect people while improving how essential work gets done.
Conclusion
Apellix is helping redefine what industrial drones can do. By developing autonomous aerial robotic platforms for power washing, spray painting, inspection, and building maintenance, the company is addressing a critical need: making dangerous work at heights safer while supporting greater efficiency in industrial operations.
For business leaders, Apellix’s story is also a reminder that meaningful innovation requires persistence, mission-driven leadership, and the right team. As aerial robotics become more mainstream, companies like Apellix are helping shape the future of industrial work.
Learn more about Apellix and its aerial robotic systems at www.Apellix.com.
