Ouster is a lidar company. It makes sensors that help machines see the real world in 3D.

The next big AI wave is not just chatbots or ai agents. It is robots, autonomous vehicles, drones, industrial machines, smart cities, warehouses, ports, security systems, and infrastructure that can understand what is happening around them.

Its core product is digital lidar. Lidar sends out light pulses and measures how long they take to return. That creates a 3D map of the environment. A camera sees color and texture. Radar sees rough distance and speed. Lidar gives machines precise depth. And is critical for autonomy.

Ouster sells into 4 main markets: industrial, robotics, automotive, and smart infrastructure. It’s goal is to create a platform for Physical AI combining lidar, cameras, AI compute, sensor fusion, perception software, and AI models.

Its sensors can be used in warehouses, factories, mining, ports, traffic intersections, security, delivery robots, mapping, agriculture, construction, and autonomous machines.

And just recently it launched Rev8. Rev8 is the world’s first mass-produced native color lidar sensor. So, instead of needing separate camera and lidar systems, Rev8 can capture 3D depth and color together in one sensor. That can reduce hardware complexity and make sensor fusion easier for robots and autonomous systems

In Q1 2026, revenue was $49 million, up 49% year over year. Product revenue was $48 million, up 55% year over year and 18% sequentially. The company also shipped more than 12,600 lidar and camera sensors, with lidar making up around 65% of the total.

That’s why it’s become a pretty popular name among retail and institutional investors recently. And that is clearly showing in the massive increase in accumulation volume. It’s one the verge of a breakout. But keep in mind that it can be very volatile.