Argo AI, the self-driving startup backed by Ford Motor Co and Volkswagen AG, has developed a sensor it believes will be key to commercialising autonomous transportation in cities, suburbs and on the highway.
The Pittsburgh-based company, which plans to go public as soon as this year, unveiled a lidar sensor Tuesday capable of “seeing” 400 meters (437 yards) down the road with almost photographic detail. Lidar bounces light off objects to create an image of the road ahead, providing critical information to computers that pilot next-generation technology in vehicles without human drivers.