Mobileye exits LiDAR - International - taulaentitatssarria.cat

Internal development has stopped

September 9, 2024, 7:54 PM | Iris Stroh

Mobileye has decided to discontinue internal development of next-generation frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) lidars for use in autonomous and highly automated driving systems.

Mobileye explained: »As part of our regular review of our long-term technology roadmap, we now believe that the availability of next-generation FMCW lidar is less critical to our eyes-off systems roadmap. This decision was based on a variety of factors, including substantial advances in our EyeQ6-based computer vision perception, increased clarity about the performance of our internally developed imaging radar, and continued better-than-expected cost reductions in third-party time-of-flight lidar units.«

This action has no impact on our customer product programs or product development generally. It also has no impact on Mobileye’s commitment to the development of our internal imaging radar, which meets performance specifications based on B-samples and is expected to enter production next year on schedule. Imaging radar is a strategic priority for Mobileye’s internal sensor development. It is a core building block technology that we expect to provide a competitive advantage for Mobileye-based eyes-off systems in terms of cost/performance optimization and scalability.

The lidar R&D unit will be phased out by the end of 2024, impacting approximately 100 employees. Operating expenses for the lidar R&D unit are expected to be approximately $60 million in 2024 (including approximately $5 million related to stock-based compensation expense). While this action is not expected to have a material impact on Mobileye’s results in 2024, it will result in the avoidance of lidar development expenditures in the future.