Lidar Startup Innoviz Jumps After Pact With Undisclosed Carmaker

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of Innoviz Technologies Ltd., an Israeli lidar startup that went public last year in a reverse merger, jumped the most in five months after it said it won a production contract from one of the world's largest carmakers.

The deal is poised to add $4 billion to Innoviz's order book, according to a statement Monday. The sensor manufacturer didn't disclose the name of the company, saying that it would “elaborate further” on the pact during a May 11 earnings call.

Lidar, laser-based sensors that allow a vehicle to “see” its surroundings, are among the most expensive components of autonomous cars and are key to enabling more advanced self-driving features. The slower-than-expected roll out of robotaxis spawned a wave of lidar startups tapping public markets to target more-limited features in passenger cars, like-hands free driving on highways.

Read more: With Robotaxis Still a Distant Dream, Lidar Makes Itself Useful

“It's a major step in the market because it's not just another research and development project, it's a decision for” large-scale deployment in consumer vehicles, Innoviz Chief Executive Officer Omer Keilaf said in an interview. He expects the deal to help the company “secure many more design wins.”

Shares of Innoviz climbed 10% at 10:32 a.m. in New York after an earlier gain of 16%, the biggest intraday advance since November.

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