Partnership with World's No. 1 LiDAR Sensor Company
Hyundai Mobis will band together with Velodyne, the world leader in LiDAR sensors, to develop autonomous driving technology.
Hyundai Mobis announced on Oct. 23 that it will make an equity investment of US$50 million in Velodyne to jointly develop autonomous driving technology. Hyundai Mobis plans to mass-produce a Level 3 autonomous driving system together with Velodyne and jointly develop Level 4 and 5 autonomous driving technologies.
Velodyne is the world's No. 1 company in the LiDAR sensor market. LiDAR or Light Detection and Ranging is an active remote sensing system that measures distance to a target by shooting laser to it and measuring the reflected light with a sensor. It can detect objects more accurately at night or in bad weather than cameras and radars. This is a necessary sensor for autonomous driving at Level 3 or higher where the driving initiative passes from a person to a system.
Under the partnership, Velodyne will supply its latest LiDAR sensors to Hyundai Mobis, while Hyundai Mobis will develop an autonomous driving system that processes data from LiDAR sensors based on software developed jointly with Hyundai Motors. The two companies plan to mass-produce LiDAR sensors for Level 3 autonomous driving in 2021, and gradually develop sensors for Level 4 or higher fully autonomous driving systems down the road.
Velodyne can take advantage of the software and supply chain of Hyundai Mobis, the world's seventh-largest auto parts maker.