Enlarge / Ousters's OS-1 (left) and OS-2 lidar sensors. (credit: Ouster) Velodyne invented modern three-dimensional lidar scanners in the mid-2000s. But in recent years, the conventional wisdom has held that Velodyne's design—which involved mounting 64 lasers onto a rotating gimbal—would soon be rendered obsolete by a new generation of solid-state lidar sensors that used a single stationary laser to scan a scene. But a startup called Ouster is seeking to challenge that view, selling Velodyne-like spinning lidar sensors at competitive prices.