Ford is going all-in on autonomous technology with a reported $75M investment in LiDAR technology company Velodyne. This investment is in partnership with Chinese company Baidu. LiDAR is laser radar and is used in self-driving car technology to "see" the physical environment around the car and relay the data to onboard computers for analysis and reaction.
The investments from Ford and Baidu will help Velodyne bring the price of the LiDAR technology down closer to mass production levels. It is reported that Ford will use the LiDAR technology on a self-driving fleet of Uber-like on-demand self-driving vehicles within five years.
The investments from Ford and Baidu will help Velodyne bring the price of the LiDAR technology down closer to mass production levels. It is reported that Ford will use the LiDAR technology on a self-driving fleet of Uber-like on-demand self-driving vehicles within five years.
Source and discussion here.
