Get to know the GENIUS NY Cohort 8 teams leading up to the Pitch Finals on Oct. 28, 2024.

Pedro Meneses and Santiago Barrera met at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where they worked on their thesis project together.

“The project that we did together was about a drone called ‘Scavenger’ that featured the Gladiator soundtrack in the background, and I have the video somewhere.” Barrera said.

That was nearly two decades ago. In the time after their university days, the two worked in roles across the aerospace industry in both the United States and Latin America. Now, they’re working together again at Aerialoop, a GENIUS NY Cohort 8 finalist, with Barrera as the COO and Meneses as the CEO.

Aerialoop is creating drone delivery networks that focus on middle mile logistics. Meneses likens it to a metro system in the air. Using what is known as last mile logistics, rather than delivering something to an exact address. Aerialoop is transporting goods between fixed, centralized stations in a city. Ground transportation then takes items to their final destination.

The middle mile method can reduce urban traffic and emissions. It’s also easier to permit and safer to operate, according to Barrera.

“We fly between five fixed points with potentially 14 or 15 fixed routes,” Barrera said. “This makes it easier to control the level of safety and risk on these routes compared to the more complex last mile delivery operations.”

Barrera and Meneses expect the GENIUS NY program and the Central New York UAS ecosystem to grow their networks and advance their technology. They’re already working on partnerships with multiple teams within the GENIUS NY portfolio. They’re also looking forward to the area’s future.

“The area around GENIUS NY has a 50-mile UAS test site corridor for beyond visual line of site (BVLOS) testing is very important. It has potential industry partnerships with Lockheed Martin, Saab and SRC, which are very critical,” Meneses said. “So I believe the ecosystem, not just what’s happened already but what will happen, is really significant.”

Aerialoop will present its technology at the GENIUS NY Pitch Finals during Innovation Night.
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