A Peek at the PX4 Developer Summit 2025 Program

The schedule is live for the PX4 Developer Summit 2025, and this year’s show is shaping up to be an exceptional event for the open source robotics community. If you are a drone developer or a roboticist who is drone-curious, this event is tailored for you. You can check out the full program for yourself or explore some of the highlighted sessions below. Attend and you’ll have your choice of sessions covering topics like PX4, ROS, AI, computer vision, state estimation, MAVLink, QGroundControl, and more.

From Defaults To Flight in 15 Minutes

Alex Klimaj from ARK Electronics demonstrates how modern Pixhawk hardware and streamlined workflows can dramatically reduce the time from unboxing to first flight. This session showcases the practical advances in Pixhawk platforms that make drone development more accessible than ever, with insights into hardware design decisions that enable such rapid deployment.

Throw Your Drone Out of the Window!

Michał Barciś from Technology Innovation Institute presents an intriguing session on crash recovery and resilience testing for PX4-powered drones. This session explores unconventional testing methodologies and robustness strategies that push the boundaries of what PX4 autopilot systems can handle, providing insights into building more resilient autonomous aircraft.

Custom Flight Modes Using PX4 and ROS2

Godfrey Nolan from RIIS LLC delivers a practical guide to extending PX4's capabilities through custom flight modes built with ROS 2. This session demonstrates how to leverage the ROS 2 interface to create specialized autonomy behaviors while seamlessly integrating with PX4's core control systems, opening new possibilities for application-specific drone behaviors.

Multicopter 101: From Design To Flight With PX4

Matthias Grob from Auterion delivers a comprehensive guide to multicopter development using PX4. This session walks through the complete journey from initial design considerations through successful first flight, providing essential knowledge for anyone building multicopter platforms. It's a perfect foundation for understanding how PX4's architecture supports rotorcraft applicati

MAVLink Tools: Tomorrow's Solutions for Today's Problems

Patrick José Pereira from Blue Robotics presents an essential session on the evolution of MAVLink tooling. This presentation explores the latest developments in MAVLink utilities and how they're addressing real-world challenges facing developers today. As the backbone of communication in the PX4 ecosystem, understanding modern MAVLink tools is crucial for anyone building robust drone systems.

From Pixels To Propellers: Sim2Real Control and Vision-based Navigation

Mihir Kulkarni from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) explores the critical bridge between simulation and real-world flight. This presentation tackles vision-based navigation techniques and the challenges of transferring control strategies from simulated environments to actual hardware, addressing one of the most difficult problems in autonomous flight development.

SAVLoc: Structure-Aided Visual Localization for PX4 in Warehouses

Michael Baldwin presents an innovative approach to GPS-denied navigation specifically designed for indoor warehouse environments. This session demonstrates how structure-aided visual localization enables reliable autonomous flight in challenging indoor spaces, showcasing practical solutions for commercial drone applications where traditional GPS is unavailable.

A little more about the PX4 Developer Summit

The PX4 Developer Summit 2025, Atlanta, Georgia, November 10th-11th brings together some of the brightest minds in open source robotics and drones. Over two days, attendees connect with maintainers, researchers, and companies pushing aerial robotics forward. Passes will be discounted by $100 until October 26th, so be sure to register for your pass soon!