DJI (大疆) sues Insta360 (影石) in first domestic patent-ownership case

The suit and the claim

DJI (大疆) has filed what it calls a patent-ownership dispute against Insta360 (影石), marking DJI’s first domestically lodged patent-rights action, it has been reported. The complaint centers on six patents that DJI says cover core drone technologies — flight control, structural design and image processing — and alleges the inventions were made within a year after certain employees left DJI and closely relate to their job duties at the company. These are serious stakes: ownership questions could decide who can legally sell consumer drones in China.

A broader market fight

This legal move is the latest front in a year-long escalation between the two firms that has stretched from supply chains into product lines. Insta360’s Antigravity “Yingling” panoramic drone, launched in December 2025 with Vision flight goggles and a motion controller, reportedly did strong early sales — and the company’s founder says the launch was met with alleged supplier “exclusion” pressure from multiple parts vendors. Is Insta360 charging into DJI’s stronghold, or provoking a counterpunch it cannot absorb? DJI has already responded on price and product: its Osmo 360 and Action series undercut comparable Insta360 models, and the company is reportedly preparing a DJI Avata 360 to challenge Antigravity directly.

The numbers and why they matter

Context matters. DJI has been the dominant consumer-drone company globally since about 2016, holding over 70% market share and commanding deep supply-chain leverage. Insta360 is a global leader in panoramic and action cameras — it held roughly 67% of the panorama camera market in 2023 and has been a rare domestic challenger to foreign incumbents — but scale differs. Insta360 reported 2025 revenue of 98.58 billion yuan and operating profit of 8.8 billion yuan, while IDC data show Insta360 shipped about 3.4 million handheld units in 2025 versus DJI’s roughly 10.04 million; DJI’s handheld-imaging revenue is estimated at about 30 billion yuan and the firm’s overall 2025 revenue has been reported in the 85–90 billion yuan range with a large drone cash flow. Price competition and strategic investment have already compressed Insta360’s margins.

What’s at stake

For Insta360, a loss in court could damage its ability to compete in China’s consumer drone space and undermine investor confidence in its technological independence. For DJI, the suit signals an attempt to defend entrenched IP and supply-chain control even as the company faces international scrutiny and export restrictions in other markets — a reminder that domestic legal and commercial battles can be as consequential as geopolitical pressures. The outcome will shape how quickly and how broadly China’s consumer drone and smart-imaging markets consolidate.