Perception technology vendor Innoviz Technologies has secured an order for its lidar from one of the largest vehicle manufacturers in the world.
This is the third major design win for Innoviz and brings its forward-looking order bookings to $6.6 billion. Innoviz said it will name the automotive OEM in the coming weeks.
Innoviz said the deal may serve as a catalyst for other car brands to adopt its platform for lidar and perception technologies.
Why it matters
The use of lidar in vehicles is growing. The more advanced processes that are being integrated into vehicles — like advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving features — are requiring different perception technologies.
Automotive OEMs are choosing sensing technologies that will enable these features and that means high revenue volumes are expected to be coming in the very near future.
According to JD Power, lidar acts as the vehicle’s eyes to always see in all directions. With the ability to real-time map the world in 360°, lidar helps vehicles identify objects on or near the roadway to avoid collisions with pedestrians, cyclists, animals and other vehicles.
As vehicles become more intelligent, lidar will be particularly useful in self-driving technology as well as safety features where the vehicle needs to take over control or assist in some way if the driver cannot act fast enough.
