( CNN ) -- Amazon , Apple and Google : All of these big tech companies have announced major robotics initiatives or investments in recent months . Amazon , in particular , managed to capture the public imagination when founder Jeff Bezos outlined a plan to deliver packages by drones . As drones become more mainstream , the prospect of excessive surveillance and other dangers loom . Drones drive down the costs of surveillance to a worrisomely low level . For example , it would n't be surprising if Amazon delivery drones were equipped with cameras for loss prevention . So what would stop law enforcement from asking Amazon for all of its drones ' footage in a given neighborhood where there had been a crime ? Simultaneously , drone technology has the potential to revolutionize delivery , agriculture , photography and possibly disrupt major industries . Imagine that you 're shopping at Barnes & Noble . You ask for a book that the store does not carry . Rather than send you online , Barnes & Noble flies the book over from another store while you shop or take a coffee break . Or imagine that you 're a farmer whose livelihood depends on catching crop disease early . You could use drones to fly over thousands of acres in an afternoon to spot problem areas . These are exciting uses for drones . But the real innovation will come when companies such as Amazon mix their robotics strategy with their love for open platforms . What does that mean ? Recall that the first personal computers did not come to the market until the mid-1970s . Before that , government and industry purchased or leased computer equipment dedicated to a particular purpose such as database management . That 's analogous to what Amazon and other companies are doing today . Amazon paid nearly $ 800 million for the robotics firm Kiva Systems for the specific purpose of helping to organize its warehouses . The company is now experimenting with drones for the second task of delivery . The real explosion of innovation in computing occurred when devices got into the hands of regular people . Suddenly consumers did not have to wait for IBM or Apple to write every software program they might want to use . Other companies and individuals could also write a `` killer app . '' Much of the software that makes personal computers , tablets and smartphones such an essential part of daily life now have been written by third-party developers . As author Jonathan Zittrain points out , it would be hard to name a category of important software -- from word-processing to e-mail -- that some computer hobbyist did not create first at home . Today , popular apps such as Snapchat or Instagram are used by millions of people . Yet , both were created by just two or three people in their 20s . There are , of course , problems with apps for robots . You do not necessarily want a live-action version of Angry Birds using drones . And who is responsible should someone get hurt by interacting with robots ? Once companies such as Google , Amazon or Apple create a personal drone that is app-enabled , we will begin to see the true promise of this technology . This is still a ways off . There are certainly many technical , regulatory and social hurdles to overcome . But I would think that within 10 to 15 years , we will see robust , multipurpose robots in the hands of consumers . Worried about your kid getting to and from the bus ? A drone app lets you follow her there by trailing her phone and returning when she waves . Selling your house ? An app on a drone will command it to fly around your property and stitch together a panorama of photos for a virtual tour . Same drone , thousands of possibilities . Put another way , the day when Amazon or Apple opens a drone app store is the day when drone innovation takes off . On an open model , the sky is quite literally the limit . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Ryan Calo .
Tech companies such as Amazon or Google are planning major drone projects . David Calo : drone technology can revolutionize delivery , agriculture , photography . He says of drone there are many technical , legal and social hurdles to overcome . Calo : When drone ##s market opens , that 's when innovation will take really off .