Imagery Collection

Drone Tasking Manager

Recent achievements

• Major improvements to the imagery processing pipeline to handle many requests at once.
• Entirely offline drone flight plan generation via QField, including packaging up a project for QField on a mobile phone.
• Improvements to the rejection of bad quality images uploaded, in addition to identification of 'flight gaps' (missed areas).

What's next

• Entirely automating the processing of large datasets, working alongside the OpenDroneMap team.
• Improving the offline experience, particularly file transfer to the drone controller, and other usability improvements.
• A simplified DroneTM lite, via the HOT Portal.

Check the tool here.

OpenAerialMap

Recent achievements

• Built two new front-end prototypes, which are undergoing testing and will be released soon.
• Prototyped a new imagery uploader alongside UC Berkeley volunteers: resumable and tested on very large files.
• Added a new 'packager' component, which can package up imagery into files that can be used offline (e.g. in FieldTM).

What's next

• Public announcement and full release of OAM v2.
• Get the new uploader production-ready and integrated.
• Grow the catalogue through new imagery-provider partnerships.

Check the tool here.

Remote Mapping

Tasking Manager

Recent achievements

• Launched the TM Sandbox, allowing users to practice OSM mapping without uploading, or generate data outside of OSM.
• Interface improvements, security fixes, and system stability, including an iD editor upgrade and library and infrastructure updates.

What's next

• Increase Sandbox adoption and use it to generate training datasets for fAIr, plus better export and merge capabilities with existing OSM data.
• Validation and quality analysis, including choropleth 'heat maps' showing where data quality needs attention.

Check the tool here.

fAIr

Recent achievements

• Improved the user experience and workflows, including a 'Try fAIr now' feature.
• New infrastructure so GeoAI developers can plug in their own models.
• fAIrSwipe 'Locate Object' projects now being tested, helping fAIr to identify specific objects in the imagery.

What's next

• Full release of the 'Locate Project' to the MapSwipe community.
• Begin implementation of 'Conflate Projects' (merging data), part of fAIrSwipe 2026.
• Release fAIr 3.0 test website with the new infrastructure.

Check the tool here.

Field Tagging

Field Tasking Manager

Recent achievements

• 'One-click' project creation for OSM buildings - simply upload or draw an area and start mapping.
• Search and package up OpenAerialMap imagery, as an offline mapping basemap.
• Addition of a FieldTM plugin to QField, for easier coordination amongst mappers in the field.

What's next

• Adding capabilities to pre-assign task areas before going to the field (a very common workflow we see in practice).
• Further refining the QField plugin and user interface, making it simple for beginner mappers.

Check the tool here.

ChatMap

Recent achievements

• Many new features: 1) move a saved map to uMap in a single click 2) add new points to update a map 3) switch the basemap to satellite imagery.
• Video tutorials.

What's next

• Data filtering and classification - filter points by date, time or (anonymised) user, and improve the experience of tagging points.
• A ChatMap bot feature, e.g. automatic responses and static forms.

Check the tool here.

HOT Portal

Recent achievements

• Launched main website at portal.hotosm.org.
• New 'plan' feature - group projects from across the 8 HOT tools together for better coordination and visibility.
• Deployed shared authentication in DroneTM (production) and fAIr (development), alongside cross-tool data deletion and API access tokens.

What's next

• Add organisations and permissions support.
• Roll out the plan for improving UI/UX across tools.
• Link with Learn & Connect, and gather user feedback.

Check the tool here.