Yole Talks about Massive Drop of LiDAR Prices

Yole Developpement 1, Yole Developpement 2: “The price drop in LiDAR in the past three years has been massive,” says Pierrick Boulay, Technology & Market Analyst, Solid-state Lighting at Yole Développement (Yole). “Indeed, it is the result of strategies by different companies and not due to the result of mass-production. Volumes have not evolved significantly in these three years and mass adoption of LiDAR still has to happen. However, this price drop of LiDAR has a significant impact on market forecast. At Yole, we expect that the unit price of LiDAR will continue to decline, and large volumes will be needed in order to maintain the market.”

"A new trend in the LiDAR business appeared a few years ago, which might dramatically change the shape of LiDAR market, namely price drops. Velodyne has announced a plan to reach an average unit price of $600 by 2024, from $17,900 in 2017. Chinese LiDAR companies, which usually have LiDAR unit prices one-fifth of other companies and usually below $1,000, are gaining market share and expanding their business. LiDAR with lower unit prices is expected to enter new industrial applications including factory, logistics and security. However, because of lower LiDAR unit prices, the industrial segment is expected to have moderate growth between 2019 and 2025, expanding from $390M to $567M."