Security personnel charged with keeping reporters away from the billionaires descending upon Sun Valley, Idaho, are now on the lookout for another threat: drones.
Event staff are watching the skies this week for unmanned aerial vehicles that could photograph, harass or harm attendees at the annual Allen & Co gathering of business executives, according to two people familiar with the plans who asked not to be named.
While scouts have monitored for remote-controlled drones at previous Sun Valley retreats, they're more prevalent this year as the flying gizmos become increasingly commonplace, said one of the people, a security official who sought anonymity because the measures are private.
Sun Valley draws some of the biggest names in technology and media, and this year's guest list includes Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Google's Eric Schmidt, all of whose companies have been investing in drone technology. Twitter's Dick Costolo, LinkedIn's Jeff Weiner, AOL's Tim Armstrong and Greylock Partners venture capitalist Reid Hoffman were spotted on Tuesday.
Reporters and photographers are here behind the velvet ropes trying to get a glimpse of the billionaires and engage them in conversation. It's the security company's job to prevent the press or other event crashers from getting in by land or air.
