In this article INVZLAZROUSTINVZLAZROUST Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTA Hesai lidar sensor on top of a vehicle in Shenzhen, China, July 10, 2022. Jade Gao | AFP | Getty ImagesFor investors in lidar startups, this has been a long time coming. After years of talk — and a SPAC boom in the sensor sector — automakers have finally started incorporating lidar units into their vehicles. Lidar, short for light detection and ranging, is a sensor technology that uses invisible lasers to create a detailed 3D map of the sensor's surroundings. Playing into investors' intense interest in self-driving technology, many lidar startups went public via mergers with special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, over the last few years.

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Persons: LAZR, INVZ LAZR, Jade Gao, They're, Luminar, —, Omer Keilaf, Keilaf, Innoviz, Austin Russell, Russell, we'll, Tom Fennimore Organizations: AFP, Getty, BMW, Volkswagen, Refinitiv, Volvo, Polestar, Benz, Luminar Technologies, Bloomberg Locations: Shenzhen, China, Germany, U.S, SPACs, Orlando , Florida