Optus to keep Sydney’s lights on with drones, AI and 5G magic…

Macquarie Park local Optus will help keep the lights on across Sydney - using drones, AI and some 5G magic.

The innovative trial of fifth generation tech is for electricity supplier Endeavour Energy, and designed to help improve how inspections happen on their distribution network.

Together with Amazon Web Services and Sydney start-up success story Unleash live, Optus will look at new ways for 5G to make an impact on the safety and efficiency of Endeavour Energy’s work.

On-site infrastructure inspections are usually a manual process involving a significant number of people, vehicles - and even helicopters.

Using a combination of 5G, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) and drone technology, Optus hopes to help Endeavour identify maintenance needs early, and reduce unplanned power outages by monitoring the physical state of their 47,000km-long electricity grid in real-time.

The project kicked off in September 2021 with the help of an Australian Federal Government 5G innovation grant, according to Chris Mitchell, Managing Director at Optus Enterprise:

“This is a great example of AWS, Unleash live and Optus coming together with Endeavour Energy to create an ecosystem of innovation that will have a lasting impact across Australia’s critical infrastructure,”

“We want to thank the Australian Federal Government for the critical role they have played in expediting the use of 5G innovation in Australia and look forward to collaborating on a solution for Endeavour Energy that will make keeping the lights on safer and more efficient.”

Optus are Macquarie Park’s largest commercial employer, and recently re-committed their presence in Macquarie Park and to their state-of-the-art campus.