Lidwave has recently secured a $10 million funding round dedicated to enhancing pedestrian recognition and advancing robot vision capabilities within industrial environments. The company is developing a technology known as 4D-LiDAR, focusing on integrating intricate LiDAR sensors onto a unified chip.
The funding round was led by Jumpspeed Ventures and Next Gear Ventures, with strategic investment from a prominent Swedish truck manufacturer. Lidwave plans to utilize the new capital to further develop its optical chip technology, launch the industry's first software-defined 4D LiDAR sensor, and expand its market presence.
Lidwave's technology addresses the high costs, structural complexities, and reliability challenges associated with existing LiDAR systems. Traditional LiDAR setups consist of multiple components, such as laser arrays, detectors, and optical parts, making the assembly process cumbersome and expensive. These factors have limited the widespread adoption of LiDAR across sectors like automotive, traffic management, and industrial automation.
To overcome these challenges, Lidwave employs an innovative approach called Finite Coherent Range (FCR), which integrates all essential components into a single chip. This integration streamlines the manufacturing process and significantly reduces costs. Unlike conventional photon-counting methods, FCR achieves precise distance and velocity measurements by treating light as a wave, while providing high-resolution data that enables systems to better understand their environment and resist external interference.
Established in 2021 and headquartered in Jerusalem, Lidwave was founded by Yehuda Vidal (CEO), Yossi Kabessa (CTO), and Uri Weiss (Chief Scientist). The company specializes in coherent optics, boasting over a decade of expertise. Its 4D concept encompasses not only spatial information but also incorporates the temporal dimension, allowing it to capture speed data of moving objects and thereby enhance image quality.
Investors recognize that while they acknowledged the importance of LiDAR technology early on, its potential for large-scale application has only recently become apparent. In addition to the primary investors, Sapir Venture Partners and Teramips Technologies also participated in this seed funding round.
Currently, Lidwave is collaborating with several manufacturers, first-tier suppliers, and key players in industrial automation and smart infrastructure, aiming to drive the adoption of autonomous driving technologies into the mass market. The technology is expected to see initial applications in industrial automation and autonomous robotics in the near term.
