Oculii

Oculii develops an artificial intelligence-based software platform for radar sensors, positioning itself as a pivotal technology provider for autonomous systems. The company was founded in 2013 by the father-son duo, Dr. Lang Hong and Steven Hong. Lang Hong, a former professor at Wright State University, and Steven Hong, a Stanford graduate with experience at Kleiner Perkins, McKinsey, and Uber, combined their expertise in radar technology and business strategy to address a fundamental challenge in the autonomous vehicle market.

The company's core offering is its Virtual Aperture Imaging (VAI) software, which dramatically enhances the performance of existing, cost-effective radar hardware. Instead of relying on increasing the number of physical antennas to improve resolution—a method that drives up cost, size, and power consumption—Oculii's AI algorithms use an adaptive waveform that learns from and adapts to the surrounding environment. This software-centric approach can increase the spatial resolution of any radar by up to 100 times, enabling the detection of objects at ranges of up to 400-500 meters with high accuracy. This allows for robust perception in all weather conditions, a critical advantage over other sensor types like cameras and LiDAR.

Oculii's business model focuses on licensing its advanced AI software to Tier 1 automotive suppliers, OEMs, and autonomous vehicle companies. Before its acquisition, the company had secured commercial development contracts and was engaged with 14 of the top 20 Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers. It also offered full-stack radar sensing solutions, such as its EAGLE and FALCON products, which are drop-in-ready modules for industries ranging from automotive to robotics and drones. A significant milestone was the acquisition by Ambarella, an AI vision semiconductor company, in November 2021 for approximately $307.5 million. This strategic move integrated Oculii’s radar software expertise with Ambarella's camera and AI processing capabilities, creating a comprehensive, all-weather perception solution to enable higher levels of vehicle autonomy.

Keywords: AI radar software, automotive perception, autonomous systems, sensor fusion, 4D imaging radar, ADAS, virtual aperture imaging, machine learning, autonomous vehicles, robotics sensing