Solid-state lidar in 2026: overview
Solid-state lidar measures distance with laser light without relying on a conventional rotating scanner. Flash illumination captures a scene across an array, while MEMS mirrors and optical phased arrays steer a beam without a traditional rotating assembly. FMCW systems can also measure velocity, while photonic integration aims to make sensing units smaller and easier to manufacture. The engineering challenge is balancing range, field of view, resolution, power, cost and reliability in a sensor suitable for deployment beyond specialist systems. Recent activity points to steady publication output alongside a sharper fall in patent activity, as the field works through the gap between promising architectures and robust products.
Recent work targets both the sensor and the perception stack. In September 2026, Zhejiang University reported a multimode-multiplexed optical phased array for coherent lidar, while researchers from Xinjiang University and Shanghai JiaoTong University presented intensity-driven corner reconstruction for lidar-camera calibration. August 2026 papers examined SPAD flash-lidar data compression and a scalable optical phased array with sidelobe suppression. In May 2026, MIT researchers reported engineered antennas intended to reduce interference and widen an array’s field of view. These directions address practical constraints: accurate sensor fusion, manageable data loads and broader, cleaner electronic beam steering.
- 1Integration over mechanics: Optical phased arrays and photonic integration aim to replace mechanical scanning, but beam quality, steering range and fabrication complexity remain key trade-offs.
- 2Perception needs calibration: Recent lidar-camera calibration methods tackle sparse scan patterns and mismatched sensor views, important obstacles to reliable multisensor perception.
- 3Applications are broadening: Automotive sensing remains a major use case, while recent research also applies solid-state lidar to mine mapping and underwater cultural-heritage surveys.
Top organizations working on solid-state lidar
Ranked by Linknovate activity score · last 24 monthsThe activity score adds up the relevance of every patent, publication, grant and news item linking an organization to solid-state lidar. Showing 7 of 168 organizations.
| # | Organization | Approach | Signals (24 mo) | Momentum | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 
Velodyne Lidar
Corporate · United States |
General | PAT 1 · NEWS 84 | -36% | Velodyne develops lidar sensors for autonomous vehicles and 3D mapping; its portfolio includes solid-state automotive sensors alongside established lidar systems. |
| 2 | 
Innoviz Technologies
Startup · Israel |
General | PAT 1 · NEWS 49 | -48% | Innoviz develops solid-state lidar sensors for autonomous vehicles, including its InnovizOne product, with a focus on compact systems suited to automotive deployment. |
| 3 | 
LeddarTech
Corporate · Canada |
Flash illumination | NEWS 37 | -63% | LeddarTech develops environmental sensing technology for automated vehicles and driver-assistance systems, with a history of solid-state flash lidar products. |
| 4 | 
Hesai Technology Co.
Corporate |
General | PAT 1 · NEWS 35 | -10% | Hesai develops lidar sensors and has patented a solid-state system comprising emitter and receiver modules, along with a method for controlling the sensor. |
| 5 | 
Robosense
Startup · China |
MEMS mirror scanning | NEWS 42 | -17% | RoboSense supplies lidar systems for autonomous vehicles, including hybrid solid-state sensors using MEMS-based scanning. |
| 6 | 
MicroVision
Corporate · United States |
MEMS mirror scanning | NEWS 52 | +543% | Recently, MicroVision’s IRIS long-range lidar was selected for integration into autonomous ground vehicles for defense applications. Its MOVIA and IRIS product lines apply scanning lidar to automotive and industrial perception. |
| 7 | 
Chinese Academy of Sciences CAS
Research · China |
Optical phased arrays | PUB 26 · NEWS 11 | -32% | Recently, researchers studied slot-engineered edge-emitting lasers for controlled, low-divergence beam steering in integrated lidar photonics. The academy also researches optical phased arrays for solid-state ranging. |
| 8 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
| 9 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
| 10 | ··Hidden organizationCompany | Approach | PAT 00 · PUB 00 GRANTS 0 · NEWS 00 | +00% | Available to registered users. |
Startups to watch and leading research centers
Startups to watch 4 total
Opsys Tech LtdIsraelOPSYS develops solid-state lidar transmitters and modular systems based on laser arrays, with designs intended to produce high-resolution beams across a target field of view.
SiLC Technologies Inc.United StatesSiLC develops machine-vision and lidar technology, with a focus on integrated FMCW coherent sensing for measuring both distance and velocity.- IRInSync Resonance Inc.United StatesInSync Resonance develops optical scanners, with patent designs for MEMS mirrors, actuators and scanning systems intended for lidar.
- ··Hidden startupCountryAvailable to registered users, with funding and founding year.
Leading research institutions 135 total
- Chinese Academy of Sciences CASChinaRecently, researchers studied slot-engineered edge-emitting lasers for controlled, low-divergence beam steering in integrated lidar photonics. The academy also researches optical phased arrays for solid-state ranging.
Jilin UniversityChinaJilin University researches silicon-based optical phased array chips for lidar, including time-lens approaches to improve ranging resolution and accuracy.
University of Chinese Academy of SciencesChinaRecently, researchers developed a microcomb-based method for high-speed single-pixel 3D imaging. The university is also associated with research on optical phased arrays for solid-state lidar.- ··Hidden research institutionCountryAvailable to registered users, with their key researchers.
- ··Hidden research institutionCountryAvailable to registered users, with their key researchers.
Where solid-state lidar innovation happens
Share of documents with at least one organization from each country.
Open the interactive map with all 168 organizationsMain technical approaches
Last 24 months| Approach | What it is | Documents | Leading organizations |
|---|---|---|---|
| MEMS mirror scanning | A micromirror steers the beam in a compact scanner; it offers controlled scanning but retains moving parts and faces durability and actuator constraints. | 219 |
Jilin University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University |
| Optical phased arrays | An array of emitters steers light electronically through phase control; it avoids mechanical scanning but must manage sidelobes, field of view and fabrication complexity. | 260 |
Jilin University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Opa! LLC |
| Flash illumination | A broad pulse illuminates the scene and an image-sensor array captures it at once; this avoids beam scanning but demands substantial detector and data-processing capacity. | 68 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Bridgewater State University, LeddarTech |
| FMCW coherent sensing | Frequency-modulated continuous-wave lidar measures range and can retrieve velocity from coherent signals; it offers rich sensing but requires precise, complex laser and receiver systems. | 161 |
Jilin University, Innoviz Technologies, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences |
| Photonic integration | Integrated photonic components bring lidar functions onto compact chips; they can support scalable systems but face optical coupling, thermal control and manufacturing challenges. | 186 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Jilin University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology |
Emerging trends
Last 12 months vs previous 36 monthsTerms whose frequency in the last 12 months grew the most compared with the previous 36 months.
Funding and investment
Recent funding rounds
Grant records total $39.8 million across 42 grants since 2020. The funding-round entries sum to $205.6 billion, but include broad corporate financing such as TSMC’s $100 billion strategic round in January 2026, so they should not be read as lidar-only investment.
Patent landscape
Top patent holders · last 24 monthsRecent developments
Latest news, duplicates removed- Sep 2026Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is a remote sensing technology that measures distances by timing laser pulses reflected from objects. By scanning its laser beams across an environment, LiDAR creates dense 3D point…AUTOMOBILE DUNIYA
- Aug 2026Dublin, Aug. 07, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Automotive LiDAR Market by Technology, Image Type, ICE Vehicle Type, Location, Electric Vehicle, Range, Laser Wavelength, Measurement Process, Level of Autonomy, and Region…GlobeNewswire - Industry News on Industrials
- Jul 2026On July 8, 2026, Geely‘s Zeekr officially opened pre-sales for the five-seater version of its flagship SUV, the Zeekr 9X. Built on the SEA-S (Sustainable Experience Architecture-S) platform, the 9X is positioned as a…CarNewsChina.com
- Jul 2026You’re no doubt familiar with the classic rotating radar antenna used for tracking aircraft, ships, and movements (Fig. 1). This antenna, which has been successfully and widely used for many decades, integrates numerous…Home | Electronic Design
- Month 20XXHidden developmentAvailable to registered users with alerts enabled.
Frequently asked questions about solid-state lidar
What companies are working on solid-state lidar?
Velodyne Lidar, Innoviz Technologies, LeddarTech, Hesai Technology Co. and Robosense are among the companies working on solid-state lidar. Their activity spans automotive sensors, flash lidar and MEMS-based scanning. MicroVision is also active, with products for automotive and industrial perception and a recent focus on defense applications.
Which solid-state lidar startups are the most promising in 2026?
OPSYS Tech Ltd, SiLC Technologies Inc. and InSync Resonance Inc. are listed as solid-state lidar startups. OPSYS develops laser-array transmitters, SiLC focuses on integrated FMCW coherent sensing, and InSync Resonance works on optical scanners and MEMS designs. Their distinct technical approaches offer different routes to compact sensing systems.
Which universities and research centers lead solid-state lidar research?
Chinese Academy of Sciences CAS, Jilin University, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai JiaoTong University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology are active research organizations. Their work includes optical phased arrays, integrated lidar photonics, microcomb-based imaging and lidar-camera calibration. Recent papers also name Zhejiang University for coherent-lidar beam steering research.
How much funding has solid-state lidar received?
The records list $39.8 million in grants across 42 awards since 2020. They also list 6 funding rounds totaling $205.6 billion, but that figure includes broad corporate financing, including TSMC’s $100 billion strategic round in January 2026. The round total should not be interpreted as investment dedicated solely to solid-state lidar.
Who holds the most solid-state lidar patents?
AGCO International GmbH leads the listed patent holders with 15 patents. Boeing Company, Hon Hai Precision Industry and InSync Resonance Inc. each have 3 listed patents. These counts identify organizations with patent activity in the topic, but do not by themselves indicate the commercial value or technical importance of each portfolio.
Is solid-state lidar patent activity growing?
No: patent activity declined 32.4% in the latest 12 months compared with the previous 12 months. The records list 119 patents in the 24-month window. This decline contrasts with publication output, which was nearly flat year over year, suggesting research remains active even as patenting has slowed.
What are the latest developments in solid-state lidar?
September 2026 research includes Zhejiang University’s multimode-multiplexed optical phased array for coherent lidar and an intensity-driven lidar-camera calibration method from Xinjiang University and Shanghai JiaoTong University. August 2026 work examined SPAD flash-lidar data compression and scalable arrays with sidelobe suppression. These developments address beam control, sensor alignment and real-time data handling.
What are the main approaches in solid-state lidar and how do they differ?
The main approaches are MEMS mirror scanning, optical phased arrays, flash illumination, FMCW coherent sensing and photonic integration. MEMS uses a moving micromirror, while phased arrays steer light electronically. Flash captures a scene across a detector array; FMCW uses coherent signals for range and velocity sensing. Photonic integration combines components on compact chips.
Which countries lead solid-state lidar?
The United States leads the listed activity with 5,006 documents, followed by China with 2,282, Germany with 1,759 and Japan with 1,312. These figures describe the geographic distribution of documents, not a direct measure of product shipments, market share or research quality.
What are the applications of solid-state lidar?
Listed applications include automotive and ADAS, robotics and industrial automation, agriculture and off-highway vehicles, mapping and surveying, and aerospace and defense. Automotive and ADAS has 517 documents, while robotics and industrial automation has 304. Recent research also explores mine-tunnel mapping and underwater cultural-heritage surveys.