Skip to content
Insights
Diverse LiDAR use cases in robotics, urban traffic, and security, highlighting non-automotive growth

63% of 2027 LiDAR Applications Will Be Outside Automotive

By 2027, 63% of the LiDAR market, hardware and software, will be outside of the automobile industry, according to the Yole Group. Read on to discover how.

LiDAR technology has gained significant traction in recent years, primarily in the automotive industry, where it plays a vital role in advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). For illustration, the total LiDAR market is projected to reach $6.3 billion in 2027, up from $2.1 billion in 2021, at a CAGR of 22% between 2022 and 2027.

However, the full potential of LiDAR technology goes much beyond the automotive industry and, especially thanks to LiDAR Software Solutions, it is expected to see significant growth in non-automotive applications.

The smart infrastructure LiDAR market, for instance, is expected to grow at a 51% CAGR between 2022 and 2027.

According to a report published by the Yole Group approximately 63% of the LiDAR market, including hardware and software, will be outside of the automotive industry by 2027.

This growth is driven by the increasing demand for LiDAR technology in applications such as smart infrastructure, mapping and surveying, robotics, and security. In the next sections, we deep-dive on them.

2021 2027 lidar market forecast

Yole Group’s report shows that almost ~2/3 of the LiDAR applications market will be outside automotive

Indeed, we listed not less than 100 applications and Use Cases of LiDAR:

The Top 101 LiDAR applications

LiDAR can make anything that moves, observes other moving things, or needs to measure volumes smarter and safer. That makes for many applications!

Read article →

Smart-Infrastructure

Smart Infrastructure is a key area of growth for LiDAR applications, where the technology can be used far beyond the creation of 3D maps of terrain or buildings.

LiDAR systems, if equipped with the right software, are particularly useful in applications such as urban planning, safety monitoring at intersections, tolling management, smart parking, land surveying, and people flow monitoring solutions.

In one of Outsight’s customer applications, we have used the Augmented LiDAR Software Parking status feature to return the occupancy state of each parking slot. This is especially useful in truck parking monitoring situations where the visibility of where the available slots are situated is quite restricted.

Parking status using Lidar by Outsight

Parking status features works with high accuracy independently of lighting conditions

On another project, Outsight’s Augmented LiDAR Software was chosen to track high-speed objects and compute the inter-vehicle distance on highways for a European national main toll manager and operator.

In this solution, LiDAR sensors were combined with ANPR cameras, which were placed on a pole next to the road. The solution classifies the object type (car, truck, bus, or motorcycle), tracks it on a reference map, measures its speed, and informs its distance to the next coming object.

Tailgating lidar monitoring example in highway

Illustrative example of a tailgating monitoring situation in highways

Finally, on another recent Smart City application, one of Europe’s biggest cities chose Outsight’s software to help them control traffic lights based on the number of cyclists in a certain zone of interest at many road intersections in the city.

In addition to that, this solution uses bicycles’ speed and traffic light timing data to propose an adjusted speed for riders with the goal of improving bicyclists’ safety and traffic flow.

Bicycle traffic flow lidar

There are many ways to improve bicycles traffic flow and safety with the use of LiDAR software

LiDAR Software Expands ITS Solutions

With the global rise of 3D sensor demand, LiDAR has never been so accessible and it’s becoming essential for Intelligent Transportation System applications.

Read article →

Airports

Airports are presently one of the most promising areas for LiDAR technology application expansion.

The fundamental reason is that LiDAR systems, which are backed by perception software, can detect and track people and items in environments with great precision, even in an enormous area or in poor lightening conditions.

Outsight shift platform

Outsight’s Spatial Intelligence Platform allows operators to continuously track passenger journeys and asset utilization across the Airport Terminal

The next article showcases how LiDAR is enabling a whole new level of situation awareness in many airport contexts, from security to operational excellence.

LiDAR Transforming Airport Flow Monitoring

LiDAR is a game changer technology enabling a whole new level of situation awareness in many airport contexts, from security to operational excellence.

Read article →

Robotics

LiDAR sensors and software are also critical for robotics applications, enabling robots to navigate and perceive their surroundings with greater accuracy and precision.

This is particularly important in applications such as warehouse automation, agricultural robotics, and autonomous delivery.

In one of Outsight’s customer applications, we have used the Augmented LiDAR Software SLAM algorithm to enable an autonomous robot to navigate through a warehouse.

On a different note, an European defense company that makes drones, robots, and other projects for the civil security and defense industries, chose Outsight’s LiDAR Software to provide the processed 3D images and data that would help operators control robots and their arms more precisely.

Lidar robotics

In this security solution, the ultimate goal of the robot is to neutralize a suspicious parcel or package.

Security

Finally, LiDAR technology and software are also finding an increasing number of applications in the security industry, where it is used to detect and track objects and people in real-time.

This is particularly useful in applications such as border control, critical infrastructure protection, and law enforcement.

It is crucial to note that LiDAR security systems are not in direct competition with camera-based video systems in this market; rather, they serve as an alternate solution when precise and accurate information on individuals and objects is required without breaching GDPR and integrity.

Security with lidar, simulation

LiDAR monitoring simulation at a security check zone of an airport

In security applications, LiDAR systems can severely help reduce the number of false positives and are less affected by weather, low-light conditions, and partial obstruction such as tree branches and bushes.

This level of accuracy is not possible with cameras alone, as they are unable to distinguish between distant and small objects.

Another great advantage LiDAR technology is its inability to capture personal information, including facial features, which is a critical feature to enable security applications.

Security lidar data

LiDAR-generated data is completely anonymous

LiDAR Enhances Security Solutions

LiDAR-based security systems, with the right perception software, provide smart, efficient, and automated means of preventing threats and avoiding false positive detections.

Read article →

What to expect

The Yole Group’s report predicts that the future of LiDAR technology will extend beyond the automotive industry, with a significant focus on smart infrastructure, mapping and surveying, robotics, and security applications.

As the non-automotive applications for LiDAR technology continue to grow, companies such as Outsight, which offer innovative LiDAR Software Solutions and seamless integration with existing infrastructure, are likely to see a surge in demand for their products.

As the traditional imagery systems used in most sectors comes with increased costs and inaccuracies, LiDAR systems can help us overcome these limitations to increase effectiveness and reliability.

Related Articles

TECHNOLOGY

LiDAR Software: An Overview of Solutions and Use Cases

Outsight's software combines LiDAR data from different sensors, converting this data into actionable KPIs in a user-friendly dashboard that supports many industries.
APPLICATIONS

The Top 101 Applications of LiDAR

LiDAR can make anything that moves, observes other moving things, or needs to measure volumes smarter and safer. That makes for many applications!

Let's connect

Send us a Message

Drop your email and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What share of the LiDAR market is expected to be outside automotive by 2027?

    According to the Yole Group, approximately 63% of the combined LiDAR hardware and software market will serve non-automotive applications by 2027. The smart infrastructure segment is the fastest-growing slice within that share, projected to expand at a 51% CAGR between 2022 and 2027, roughly twice the overall LiDAR market's 22% CAGR across the same period. This divergence reflects how quickly fixed-infrastructure deployments in airports, cities, and industrial sites are scaling relative to automotive. Outsight operates squarely in that growth segment, applying infrastructure-based LiDAR across airports such as Dallas Fort Worth and Paris-Charles de Gaulle, smart-city intersections, and factory floors at manufacturers including BMW.

  • Why is smart infrastructure the fastest growing LiDAR segment outside automotive?

    Fixed-infrastructure deployments benefit from a cost dynamic that autonomous vehicles do not: one sensor cluster mounted on a ceiling or gantry serves everyone who passes beneath it indefinitely, with no per-unit replication cost. This makes the economics of adding spatial intelligence to airports, rail stations, and intersections increasingly attractive as sensor prices fall. Outsight's infrastructure-based Physical AI approach captures exactly this advantage, with deployments at sites such as Dallas Fort Worth, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, and SNCF train stations demonstrating measurable returns across staffing optimization, safety compliance, and throughput. The operational value from such deployments is typically visible within months, which shortens procurement cycles considerably compared to automotive programs that run for years before revenue.

  • How is LiDAR used for cyclist safety at city intersections?

    In smart-city intersection deployments, LiDAR sensors track cyclists in defined zones and feed occupancy data directly to traffic-signal controllers. The system computes each rider's speed and, by combining that with signal-phase timing, can suggest an advisory speed that lets the cyclist reach the next green light without stopping. This reduces both conflict events and stop-start energy loss. The City of Bellevue uses exactly this approach through Outsight's infrastructure-based LiDAR platform as part of its Vision Zero program, tracking vulnerable road users in real time while capturing only shape and motion data, never faces or biometric identifiers. That anonymity by design removes the privacy barriers that have slowed camera-based equivalents in European cities, making LiDAR a practical path to safer urban cycling infrastructure regardless of lighting conditions.

  • Can LiDAR replace ANPR cameras for highway tolling and vehicle classification?

    LiDAR and ANPR cameras are typically paired rather than swapped. LiDAR classifies vehicle type (car, truck, bus, motorcycle), measures speed, and calculates inter-vehicle distance with high accuracy in any lighting condition. ANPR cameras read license plates for identity and billing. In toll deployments, the LiDAR layer handles the physics of the measurement while the camera handles the identity lookup. Removing ANPR and relying solely on LiDAR would sacrifice license-plate-based billing; removing LiDAR and relying solely on cameras would lose the precise 3D classification and spacing data. This complementary logic also reflects how infrastructure-based LiDAR platforms operate more broadly: Outsight's SHIFT platform, for example, is LiDAR-native and anonymous by definition, capturing shape and motion without reading license plates or faces, which makes it well suited to the classification and measurement role rather than the identity layer.

  • What makes LiDAR better than cameras for perimeter security in low light?

    Cameras are passive sensors that depend on ambient or artificial light to form an image. In darkness or fog, image quality degrades and detection algorithms lose accuracy. LiDAR is an active sensor: it emits its own laser pulses and measures how they return, so darkness and most weather conditions have no effect on detection range or classification accuracy. LiDAR also cannot capture facial features or license plates, which means perimeter monitoring deployments avoid the legal exposure that comes with camera-based surveillance storing identifiable footage. Outsight applies this property directly in security-sensitive deployments, including datacenters, where its Infrastructure-based Physical AI approach uses LiDAR to track shape and motion anonymously, by definition, without ever recording biometric data.

  • How does LiDAR software enable robots to navigate in unstructured environments?

    LiDAR-equipped robots use SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) algorithms to build a 3D map of their surroundings while tracking their own position within that map in real time. This allows navigation in spaces where GPS is unavailable and floor layouts change, such as warehouses with moving pallets or construction sites. When the robot's onboard perception is complemented by infrastructure-mounted LiDAR covering the full site, it gains a beyond-line-of-sight view of the environment, letting it anticipate obstacles and other moving agents before they enter the robot's own sensor range. Outsight's infrastructure-based approach, deployed in facilities such as BMW factories, applies this principle at scale: the Motional Digital Twin tracks every person, vehicle, and robot across a site in real time, feeding autonomous systems a shared spatial picture that no single onboard sensor could provide alone.