【#Tech24H】In July 2025, Insta360 announced its entry into the drone market. DJI’s counterattack came even faster, just three days later, it launched its first panoramic camera, the Osmo 360, entering Insta360’s home turf at a lower price. The relationship between the two companies shifted from “each minding their own business” to “closely combat”. DJI fought a war of attrition, able to withdraw and try again on a different front after a loss, while Insta360 fought a defensive war, with every inch burning on its own profit sheet. At its peak, Insta360’s market valuation reached as high as 150 billion yuan, but as of now, it has shrunk to just 43.6 billion yuan. Regarding the sharp drop in net profit, Insta360 explained in its financial report that, first, procurement costs for core raw materials continued to rise, prices of DDR and other memory chips kept increasing and remained at high levels; and second during the reporting period; second, the expansion into panoramic drones as a new product category incurred phased investments that negatively impacted overall profits. Insta360 now has only two paths left: either bet on AI differentiation, pushing AI director, AI cinematography, and AI editing to the forefront quickly, and rebuilding premium value above the middle layer, or contract its front lines and retreat to its panoramic core business, giving gross margin and cash flow some breathing room. However, with DJI pressing hard, such a retreat could mean permanent loss of market share. [ By Zhang Liyan | Tang Ruohan ]