Carlo Ratti Associati unveils drone-powered street art system

Carlo Ratti Associati, an innovation design studio based in Turin with offices in Boston and London, has announced 'Paint by Drone,' a project that uses remotely controlled drones to create street art on blank urban walls. The drones are guided via a smartphone app and can follow instructions from a single user or a community, enabling collaborative, real-time murals. The system is designed primarily for scaffolding tarps covering buildings under construction or renovation, which are typically left blank or used for advertising. Carlo Ratti, who also directs the MIT Senseable City Lab, envisions these surfaces as canvases for 'phygital graffiti'—a blend of physical and digital art that can be open-source and data-driven. The first two field tests are scheduled for autumn in Turin and Berlin.