Watch: Spectacular drone display creates 'UFO' over Canary Wharf

A 'UFO' appeared on London’s skyline over Canary Wharf on Wednesday (January 17), shocking bystanders at the River Thames.

The spectacle was created using 552 drones in a publicity stunt by Samsung to celebrate the landing of its new Galaxy S24 device.

The display, part of Samsung’s annual Unpacked event, saw ‘Galaxy AI is here’ spelt out in a visual that stretched 160m. The Galaxy S24 device was then beamed into the sky before morphing into the solar system in a display that took 650 hours to be designed and programmed by drone light company Celestial.

Annika Bizon, marketing and omnichannel director for Samsung UK and Ireland, said: “To celebrate the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S24 series, we wanted to capture the wonder and amazement of this new age of smartphone by creating a spectacular drone show that would gaze beyond our planet and into the galaxy.

"We brought the stars, solar system and universe closer than ever before to the British public to demonstrate the infinite possibilities as we look to embark on a new journey with Galaxy AI.”

Samsung says AI amplifies nearly every experience on Galaxy S24 series, from intelligent text and call translations to maximising the Galaxy’s ProVisual Engine and debuting the Circle to Search with Google.

For photography, Galaxy S24’s ProVisual Engine is a suite of AI-powered tools that enhance image capturing abilities and usability, from setting up a shot to sharing it on social media. The device has upgraded Nightography capabilities on its Space Zoom.

The Galaxy S24 has a language capability called Live Translate, which is a two-way, real-time voice and text translations of phone calls within the native app.

The Galaxy S24 Ultra is the first Galaxy phone to feature a titanium frame. Its thinner body enables a more comfortable grip.

From January 31, the Samsung Galaxy S24 will be widely available in Samsung channels and from UK retailers.