Tesla claims that LiDAR is not necessary for full self-driving, but a Tesla Model X test vehicle spotted in Northern California ahead of the company's robotaxi event on October 10 was equipped with a LiDAR device.
Tesla has adopted a vision-based approach to its electric cars, eliminating LiDAR and even ultrasonic sensors, reports Teslarati.
The company only uses external cameras for its full self-driving suite, and CEO Elon Musk has emphasized that no additional technology is needed to be successful in this space.
Related article: Will Xpeng follow in Tesla's footsteps? New F57 to eliminate LiDAR and achieve pure visual driving
“LiDAR is stupid. Anyone who relies on LiDAR is doomed,” Musk said at Tesla Autonomy Day in 2019, to which Teslarati added:
Earlier this year, Musk said Tesla no longer needs LiDAR for ground truth data.
Tesla appears to still be using LiDAR for data collection, or perhaps visual verification, as Teslarati has spotted images showing a LiDAR-equipped Model X engineering vehicle spotted in Northern California.
This LiDAR device has previously been spotted in various Tesla vehicles, including the Model Y in Palm Beach in 2021.
Tesla is set to unveil its robotaxi on October 10, delayed from August 8. The delay is due to necessary revisions, including a redesigned front end and additional time to showcase other features.
Price Action: TSLA shares were down 2.76% and trading at $203.45 as of last check on Wednesday.
Disclaimer: This content was created in part with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Read next:
AI-generated images from Shutterstock
Market news and data provided by Benzinga API
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
