I think it also fundamentally depends on the business model being pursued:
- If you are trying to sell the Model 3 directly to the end consumer with autonomous mode, the extra $10K for Lidar and bulk (which will greatly effect the exterior design) are definitely non-starters.
- If you are going to robo-taxi route (such as Waymo and Uber), the extra one time $10K cost to add lidar for the 5 year life of the car is probably a blip on the income statement of the operator as compared to a full time human driver which probably costs $10K PER MONTH for the lifetime of the service. For the robo-taxi business model - its a bit of a no brainer - they could stick every sensor known to man on the car and still make out like a warlord by getting rid of the human driver but maintained a 100% safety record. Plus making the car stand-out with a unique Lidar inclusive shape is a great marketing differentiator. Also reduces your liability if a taxi rider ever sues since you can claim you have redundancy in the system.
- If you are trying to sell the Model 3 directly to the end consumer with autonomous mode, the extra $10K for Lidar and bulk (which will greatly effect the exterior design) are definitely non-starters.
- If you are going to robo-taxi route (such as Waymo and Uber), the extra one time $10K cost to add lidar for the 5 year life of the car is probably a blip on the income statement of the operator as compared to a full time human driver which probably costs $10K PER MONTH for the lifetime of the service. For the robo-taxi business model - its a bit of a no brainer - they could stick every sensor known to man on the car and still make out like a warlord by getting rid of the human driver but maintained a 100% safety record. Plus making the car stand-out with a unique Lidar inclusive shape is a great marketing differentiator. Also reduces your liability if a taxi rider ever sues since you can claim you have redundancy in the system.