In the wave of the low - altitude economy, concepts such as drone logistics, air taxis, and urban air mobility (UAM) are emerging in an endless stream, seemingly presenting a prosperous scene. However, behind the hustle and bustle, many so - called “innovations” are just pseudo - demands in the guise of technology. How can we use the “Occam’s Razor” to eliminate these redundancies and find the real market pain points? Starting from critical thinking and combining data and cases, this article will reveal the essence and future of the low - altitude economy.

I. The “Pseudo - demand Traps” in the Low - altitude Economy

1.1 The Proliferation of Concept Hype

The concept of the low - altitude economy has been over - packaged in recent years. Many projects, under the banners of “future transportation” and “smart cities”, lack actual application scenarios. For example:

• Aerial Advertising Drones: Although they have a cool visual effect, they are costly and have a limited audience, making it difficult to form a large - scale market.

• Personal Flying Backpacks: The technology is immature, with great safety hazards and extremely low market demand.

1.2 The Truth Revealed by Data

According to the 2024 global low - altitude economy market research data, there are significant gaps between the actual and expected market sizes in the following fields:

Data Source: 2024 “Global Low - altitude Economy White Paper”

As can be seen from the table, the actual market sizes of drone logistics and agricultural plant protection drones have relatively small gaps with the expected ones, while the gaps for air taxis and urban air mobility (UAM) are huge, indicating obvious pseudo - demands in the latter.

II. Using the “Occam’s Razor” to Eliminate Redundancies

2.1 Key Points of the “Occam’s Razor”

The “Occam’s Razor” principle emphasizes: “Entities should not be multiplied without necessity.” In the low - altitude economy, this means that we need to eliminate those complex but valueless concepts and focus on the simplest and most direct demands.

2.2 Three Criteria for Eliminating Pseudo - demands in the Low - altitude Economy

1. Technical Feasibility: Is there mature technical support?

2. Market Demand: Is there real and large - scale demand?

3. Economy: Is the cost controllable and can commercialization be achieved?

Take air taxis as an example:

• Technical Feasibility: Currently, problems such as battery life and air traffic management have not been completely solved.

• Market Demand: High costs limit the user group, and the market demand is limited.

• Economy: The operating costs are extremely high, making it difficult to achieve profitability.

Therefore, at the current stage, air taxis are more of a concept hype rather than a real demand.

III. Focusing on the Real Market Pain Points

3.1 Drone Logistics: The “Last Mile” in Rural and Remote Areas

In rural and remote areas, traditional logistics is costly and inefficient. Drone logistics can significantly reduce costs and improve delivery efficiency.

• Case: JD.com’s drone delivery pilot project in Liangshan Prefecture, Sichuan Province, reduced the delivery time from 3 days to 1 hour and the cost by 50%.

3.2 Agricultural Plant Protection Drones: The “New Engine” of Precision Agriculture

Agricultural plant protection drones can greatly improve the operation efficiency and reduce the amount of pesticides used through precise spraying.

• Data: In 2024, the market size of agricultural plant protection drones in China reached USD 5 billion, covering an area of more than 100 million mu of farmland.

3.3 Emergency Rescue: The “Social Value” of the Low - altitude Economy

In the event of natural disasters or emergencies, drones can quickly reach the disaster area and provide services such as material transportation and communication support.

• Case: During the 2023 earthquake in Turkey, drones completed 90% of the material delivery tasks in the disaster area within 72 hours.

IV. Implementable Business Models

4.1 B2B Model: Focusing on Enterprise - level Services

• Drone Logistics: Cooperate with e - commerce platforms and logistics companies to provide delivery services in rural and remote areas.

• Agricultural Plant Protection: Cooperate with agricultural cooperatives and large farms to provide plant protection services.

4.2 Government Cooperation: In the Field of Public Services

• Emergency Rescue: Cooperate with government emergency management departments to provide disaster relief services.

• Urban Management: Cooperate with urban management departments for traffic monitoring, environmental monitoring, etc.

4.3 Data Services: The Extension from Hardware to Software

• Data Collection: Collect geographical information and environmental data through drones to support smart cities.

• Data Analysis: Use AI technology to analyze the collected data and provide decision - making support.

V. Future Outlook: The “Golden Decade” of the Low - altitude Economy

The real value of the low - altitude economy lies in solving the pain points of traditional industries, rather than creating new concept bubbles. In the next decade, with technological progress and policy support, fields such as drone logistics, agricultural plant protection, and emergency rescue will experience explosive growth. And those pseudo - demands lacking actual value will eventually be eliminated by the market.

Conclusion

The future of the low - altitude economy does not lie in the accumulation of concepts, but in solving real market pain points. Using the “Occam’s Razor” to eliminate pseudo - demands and focusing on implementable business models is the key to the sustainable development of the low - altitude economy. As Einstein said, “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” In the exploration of the low - altitude economy, we should not only maintain respect for technology but also adhere to the pursuit of value.

Appendix: Core Keyword Matrix
Low - altitude Economy | Occam’s Razor | Drone Logistics | Agricultural Plant Protection | Emergency Rescue | Business Model | Market Pain Points