Luminar Technologies, a leading provider of lidar sensors for autonomous vehicles, announced on Friday its plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 20% as part of a restructuring initiative for the current year. The company aims to streamline its operations and reduce costs.
As of December last year, Luminar employed nearly 800 full-time staff across its locations in the U.S., Germany, Sweden, India, and China. In addition to workforce reductions, Luminar intends to sub-lease some of its facilities either partially or entirely, as it seeks to reduce its global footprint.
The restructuring plan, set to be implemented immediately, is expected to result in annual operating cost savings of $50 million to $65 million by the end of this year, the company stated.
Luminar recently unveiled its latest lidar sensor, Halo, in April. The company has partnered with auto-software maker Applied Intuition to assist car manufacturers in testing their advanced driver-assistance systems.
Lidar sensors play a crucial role in enabling self-driving cars and driver-assistance systems to create a detailed three-dimensional map of the road. This technology is widely regarded as a key enabler for achieving full autonomy in vehicles.
