Chinese Lidar-Maker Hesai Eyes Growth Overseas, Where Adoption Lags

Caixin Global · Kelsey Cheng Published Nov 5 · 2026-11-05 00:00 UTC

Hesai CFO says falling costs and scale give the company an edge as global penetration of the automotive sensor technology remain in the low single digits

1. [para. 1][para. 2] Hesai Group’s CFO Andrew Fan said the Chinese lidar maker is betting that overseas automakers will speed up adoption of the laser-sensing technology, creating a major growth opportunity for Chinese suppliers that have built manufacturing and cost advantages at home. He noted that China accounts for the vast majority of automotive lidar installations worldwide, while adoption in overseas passenger vehicles remains at an early stage.

2. [para. 3][para. 4] In China, nearly 2.76 million primary lidar sensors were installed in passenger vehicles in 2025, with Hesai holding about 41% of the market. Globally, penetration is much lower — around 3% of passenger vehicles in 2025, according to Fan’s estimate, though industry estimates vary by vehicle and sensor category.

3. [para. 5][para. 6] The overseas passenger-vehicle lidar market has been relatively small, Fan said. It began developing around the same time as China’s, roughly in 2019 or 2020, but slower autonomous-driving development among overseas automakers has kept lidar adoption from reaching significant scale outside China. Falling prices have helped accelerate adoption in China: Hesai’s blended average selling price has dropped from roughly 4,000 to 5,000 yuan three years ago to just above 1,000 yuan today.

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