Florida, May 4: US-based Luminar Technologies, known for developing vision-based LiDAR sensors and machine perception tech, announced laying off 20% of its employees. The Luminar layoffs were initiated due to the broader restructuring of the company's production process. As a part of this restructuring exercise, the company will cut  some jobs to improve overall production. 

The Luminar layoffs, which are expected to affect at least 147 employees out of the 730 working in the United States, are part of a broader strategy by the tech company, according to the report by The Verge. Luminar plans to outsource more production to its partners and  transition to an 'asset light' business model. This move, while reducing the  company's workforce, is aimed at ensuring more efficient production and securing its future in the competitive tech market. Tech Layoffs: Over 80,000 Tech Employees Lost Jobs Globally in First Four Months of 2024, Job Cuts Continue To Haunt Overall Startup Ecosystem, Says Report.

Luminar CEO Austin Russel reportedly said  it would be difficult for the company to let some of these people go as they had been a part of the journey for years. The report further said that the LiDAR developer informed the employees affected by the layoffs about the roles that were not required. After the Tesla layoffs, this would be another company in the automobile and tech sector that would cut jobs to save costs. 

Luminar Technologies develops LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensors and delivers them to the top automobile companies such as Volvo, Toyota Research Institute, Airbus, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and China's SAIC and autonomous driving company Pony.ai. The Luminar restructuring might reportedly help the company save $400 million in the coming five years. The CEO Austin Russel further said that the Luminar layoffs will also help the company save $80 million in saving on an 'annual run basis'. Tesla Layoffs: Elon Musk Lays Off Entire Tesla Charging Network Team, Says Will Fire More Employees Who Do Not Pass 'Excellent, Necessary and Trustworthy' Test.

The report said the layoffs at Luminar had been the latest setback that hit the struggling autonomous vehicle industry. We have already seen tech giant Apple scrape the self-driving project and cut 600 jobs. General Motors-owned Cruiser company also initiated job cuts by letting go of 24% of its workforce. Aura company, which works on autonomous trucks, has laid off 3% of its employees. 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 04, 2024 11:54 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).