Hesai Technology, a major player in lidar solutions, has inked a strategic partnership with Keeta Drone, the autonomous urban delivery arm of e-commerce giant Meituan. This collaboration is poised to accelerate the commercialization of the burgeoning low-altitude economy, with Hesai set to supply its second-generation solid-state lidar, the FTX, for Keeta Drone’s next-generation delivery drones.
This move comes at a pivotal time for robotics and AI. A recent report by Morgan Stanley’s Global Embodied AI team, *The Robot Almanac*, projects a staggering USD 25 trillion in global robot hardware revenue by 2050. This massive market encompasses a diverse range of robotic forms, from industrial automatons and service robots to delivery drones, autonomous vehicles, and even humanoid companions, impacting industries like manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, and transportation.
Keeta Drone, a frontrunner in low-altitude logistics, has already established an integrated air-and-ground delivery network. Its self-developed drone systems are expanding beyond food delivery to encompass pharmaceuticals and emergency supplies. The company currently operates 65 delivery drone routes across major cities including Beijing, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Dubai, having successfully completed over 740,000 deliveries.
A key innovation highlighted in this partnership is Keeta Drone’s newly unveiled fourth-generation long-range drone, the M-Drone 4L. This drone stands out as the first commercial delivery drone to feature lidar as a standard component, integrated with vision and GNSS for robust multi-modal sensor fusion. Hesai’s FTX lidar is central to this system, providing advanced 3D perception crucial for the safe and reliable operation of delivery drones in complex urban, low-altitude environments. The FTX boasts an ultra-wide field of view, enabling precise detection of obstacles such as power lines and tree branches. Furthermore, its performance is not compromised by lighting conditions or adverse weather, ensuring consistent perception capabilities for drones operating at night or in conditions like rain and fog.
Keeta Drone showcased the advanced capabilities of this lidar integration during a demonstration, successfully completing a two-kilometer nighttime flight navigation that relied entirely on lidar. This achievement signifies a breakthrough in positioning technology, allowing for precise flight and navigation without the need for satellite or vision-based systems, a critical development for reliable nighttime operations.
The FTX lidar represents a significant leap forward from its predecessor, offering double the resolution, a substantially optimized form factor, and a remarkable 66% reduction in weight. These improvements are expected to significantly streamline integration and reduce manufacturing costs for drone applications. Hesai has slated the FTX for large-scale mass production and delivery starting in 2026.
Looking ahead, Hesai and Keeta Drone are committed to a close working relationship. Their joint efforts aim to facilitate the development of a resilient, all-weather, and high-density urban low-altitude logistics network, capable of supporting a broad spectrum of real-world delivery scenarios. This partnership underscores the growing importance of lidar technology in enabling the next wave of autonomous systems and expanding the reach of commercial robotics.
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