Lidar (English: Laser Radar) is a radar system that emits laser beams to detect the position, speed and other characteristics of the target. Laser radar, general-purpose MCU for body control, electric drive IGBT, battery management MOSFET, power control analog chip, and in-vehicle/workshop communication chip have guided the development of the main enterprises in the automobile chain.
These companies have deployed to the midstream application fields with broader market space in the three major markets of pan-semiconductor process, laser radar (automotive application) , and medical health, and actively cultivated upstream chip supply chains such as laser radar.
And self-driving lidar, OPA LiDAR car charger, car power management IC, car microprocessor MCU, inverter are also constantly developing with the times. Among them, the vehicle-mounted lidar has obvious advantages, which can help the lidar to see farther and faster .
Nvidia:
Some time ago, there was good news: Nvidia DRIVE Orin, the world's highest-performance car-grade chip, will be put into use in cars. The new Drive Hyperion 9 platform will also be put into use in 2026. The architecture includes 3 lidar sensors, 14 cameras, 9 radars, and 20 ultrasonic sensors on the outside of the vehicle. It is reported that the market value of Nvidia once fell back to more than 600 billion U.S. dollars , but soon as the stock price rose, the market value of Nvidia once again exceeded 700 billion U.S. dollars. Nvidia, which skyrocketed by 12% overnight and whose market capitalization exceeded $700 billion, uses Metaverse as its engine.
It can be seen that Metaverse may bring huge growth opportunities in the future. At the same time, Nvidia and other related major brands have begun to focus on meeting market demand in the fields of lidar, communications, data centers, microwave photonics, and medical testing.
Sony:
Sony has launched a high-performance lidar sensor for vehicles at the end of 2021 and plans to supply it this year. This year, Sony announced the establishment of Sony Mobility, an electric vehicle company, and released a prototype of an SUV-type electric vehicle——Vision S 02. A total of 40 sensors were installed, including 4 lidars and 18 cameras, all of which were self-developed by Sony. At the same time, Sony has also laid out lidar, and will soon ship stacked SPAD sensors. Downstream applications such as lidar and industrial inspection continue to develop during this process.
In addition, the research and development of technologies and products such as Double Side Molding RF packaging technology, automotive lidar, and automotive-grade 12-inch wafer-level packaging are being promoted by major manufacturers. In the financing event in the field of compound semiconductors in Q1, components such as on-board chargers and lidars are promising, which will play a major role in promoting the development of new energy vehicle technology.
