GM buys Strobe Inc. LiDAR to boost autonomous vehicle development

Detroit, Michigan – To support autonomous-vehicle research and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), General Motors has purchased Strobe Inc., a manufacturer of light detection and ranging (LiDAR) equipment.

GM plans to roll strobe into Cruise Automation, an autonomous vehicle startup it bought early this year.

“Strobe’s LIDAR technology will significantly improve the cost and capabilities of our vehicles so that we can more quickly accomplish our mission to deploy driverless vehicles at scale,” says Kyle Vogt, founder and CEO, Cruise Automation.

LiDAR uses light to create high-resolution images that provide a more accurate view of the world than cameras or radar alone.

“The successful deployment of self-driving vehicles will be highly dependent on the availability of LiDAR sensors,” says Julie Schoenfeld, founder and CEO, Strobe Inc. “Strobe’s deep engineering talent and technology backed by numerous patents will play a significant role in helping GM and Cruise bring these vehicles to market sooner than many think.”

Last month, Cruise Automation revealed the world’s first mass-producible car designed with the redundancy and safety requirements necessary to operate without a driver. The vehicle will join Cruise’s testing fleets in San Francisco, California; metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona; and Detroit.