Lidar maker Luminar held an investor day event in Orlando, Florida, during which it unveiled a new version of its Iris sensor that will be included in production vehicles from Mercedes-Benz. The company also announced a series of ambitious expansion plans, including a new factory in Mexico, a semiconductor subsidiary, and the acquisition of a data hardware startup’s lidar division.
Lidar, a key ingredient in autonomous driving, is a laser sensor that uses near-infrared light to detect the shapes of objects. This helps autonomous vehicles “see” other objects on the road, l...