"...there are about 70 to 80 companies that have attempted to enter the lidar market. Some have succeeded, some have died because they can’t get venture capital, and some are in stealth, he said.
Citing companies like Innoviz Technologies, VeloDyne, and Ouster, he added that he thinks “only a handful of lidar companies will be around in a couple years.”
When he started the company two years ago, he said the focus was on long-range lidar. Now, he said, there are different segments within the automation market, as different types of sensors can be applied to varied use-cases, whether it’s night sight or cutting through the fog.
“It used to be mostly for highway driving,” now there are lots of other segments and different cost points, he said. “Some companies will succeed going after the easy ones” like facial recognition, for example."
Is this really a surprise to anyone who knows business? In a market where there is not strong adoption or requirement, it's just natural selection at work.
ReplyDeleteOf course there will be consolidation! This doesn't require expert, domain-specific analysis. This is normal for any disruptive technology segment.
ReplyDeleteBy example, to quote from The History Channel's page on the history of the motor car, "Thirty American manufacturers produced 2,500 motor vehicles in 1899, and some 485 companies entered the business in the next decade."