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OUST vs. INVZ: Which LiDAR Manufacturer Is Worth Holding Onto Now?
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Key Takeaways
Ouster extends its sensing platform as Rev8 gains traction across robotics, infrastructure and defense.
OUST posted 51% product revenue growth to $53 million, with sensor shipments topping 17,000 in Q2 2026.
INVZ targets faster growth through defense, but customer milestones and production ramps create timing risks.
Ouster, Inc. (OUST - Free Report) and Innoviz Technologies Ltd. (INVZ - Free Report) are prominent names in the rapidly evolving LiDAR and autonomous sensing industry. Both companies have developed advanced LiDAR technologies designed to support autonomous driving, robotics, industrial applications and other emerging use cases. Both companies are expanding beyond traditional automotive applications by leveraging their sensing and perception technologies to address growing opportunities across mobility, physical AI, defense and other markets.
Year to date, Ouster stock has rallied 102%, while Innoviz shares have plunged 54.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
A closer look at the companies’ fundamentals, growth catalysts and key risks can provide insight into the factors shaping their investment prospects.
The Case for OUST Stock
Ouster is extending beyond lidar into a unified sensing and perception platform spanning cameras, AI compute, sensor fusion, software and AI models. The StereoLabs acquisition has broadened its reach in robotics, while the ZED X Nano has drawn substantial customer uptake in humanoid and robotic manipulation applications. In the second quarter of 2026, Ouster also expanded relationships across industrial automation, mining, security, autonomous vehicles and robotics.
Deeper NVIDIA integration brings Rev8 to DRIVE and Jetson platforms, simplifying deployment for customers building Physical AI systems. As autonomy moves into more complex real-world settings, this broader product stack can increase Ouster's relevance across industrial, robotics, smart infrastructure and automotive markets.
Rev8 appears to be Ouster's most important near-term product catalyst. The company is seeing strong customer adoption of its Rev8 OS1 Max native-color digital lidar. Payload integrators and drone manufacturers in the aerial mapping market are selecting the sensor for applications including utility corridor inspections, infrastructure monitoring and defense. Also, Ouster is strengthening its collaboration with Flyability, a specialist in confined-space inspection and mapping. The collaboration combines Flyability’s collision-tolerant Elios 3 drone with Ouster’s digital lidar technology to enable industrial operators to collect accurate 3D data in hazardous, inaccessible and GPS-denied environments.
Ouster's smart infrastructure momentum provides a visible deployment engine. In the second quarter of 2026, BlueCity supported a 42-location digital traffic twin in New Jersey and more than 30 intersections in Georgia. Ouster also secured an order covering several hundred intersections for the Utah Department of Transportation. Rev8-based advanced detection extends multimodal classification to 500 feet, opening higher-speed road applications, while Build America Buy America compliance makes Rev8 and BlueCity eligible for U.S. government-funded infrastructure projects. Ouster expects BlueCity and Gemini to become a larger portion of revenue over time as customers expand from initial deployments to broader citywide and statewide networks.
Ouster delivered its 14th consecutive quarter of product revenue growth in the second quarter of 2026. Product revenues rose 51% year over year to $53 million, while total sensor shipments exceeded 17,000 units. Continued adoption across industrial automation, infrastructure and robotics could support Ouster's long-term target of 30-50% annual revenue growth. The company ended June 2026 with $263 million of cash, restricted cash and short-term investments and no debt, before raising about $191 million of net proceeds in July. The resulting liquidity is sufficient to fund the current operating plan through its path to profitability.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for OUST’s 2026 and 2027 loss per share has widened 4 cents and narrowed 18 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Case for INVZ Stock
Innoviz is expanding beyond automotive LiDAR into defense and homeland security through its new Perciz brand. This market is a potential multibillion-dollar opportunity for the company, supported by rising government spending in Israel, the United States, Europe and other regions. The company has already secured its first major defense order worth $3.5 million for several hundred LiDAR units used in Counter-UAS and perimeter security applications. Six companies have publicly announced engagements with Innoviz, while the company is in discussions with dozens of additional potential customers. It expects non-automotive revenues to rise from 1% in 2025 to 10% in 2026 and 20-30% in 2027.
The defense and security business could improve Innoviz's revenue mix and profitability because LiDAR selling prices in these applications are expected to be significantly higher than in automotive. Defense ASPs can be an order of magnitude higher, while shorter sales cycles could also support faster revenue conversion. The company expects gross-margin improvement as defense unit shipments increase alongside NRE payments and automotive production. Innoviz reported positive gross margin in the second quarter and expects gross margins to remain positive for the full year. The combination of higher-value defense programs and increasing automotive volumes could therefore create operating leverage as the business scales.
However, a significant portion of Innoviz's expected growth depends on automotive and defense programs reaching important milestones and moving toward production. It expects the bulk of 2026 second-half revenues to arrive in the fourth quarter because of the timing of customer milestones and SOPs. Several automotive opportunities are still in development or evaluation rather than full production.
Similarly, the defense business is in its early stages, with the first large order only recently announced. Delays in SOPs, customer decisions, testing, integration or deployment could push revenue recognition into later periods. This creates considerable timing sensitivity around the company's revenue targets and near-term financial performance.
Innoviz is simultaneously expanding its automotive portfolio, developing perception software and entering defense and homeland security. This broader opportunity increases execution complexity. In automotive, the company operates as a Tier 1 and can be responsible for LiDAR integration and, in some cases, software.
In defense, it is primarily pursuing a Tier 2 model through system integrators to accelerate market entry. The company is also developing compute and tracking capabilities alongside LiDAR for Counter-UAS applications. Managing these different products, customer requirements, integrations and production ramps could place pressure on resources and execution. The company must scale these activities while maintaining product performance and meeting customer milestones.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for INVZ’s 2026 and 2027 loss per share has widened by 3 cents and 4 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Conclusion
Ouster has demonstrated stronger operating momentum, with 14 consecutive quarters of product revenue growth and a 51% year-over-year increase in product revenues in the second quarter of 2026. Its diversified exposure across industrial automation, robotics, infrastructure, defense and autonomous applications also provides multiple avenues for growth. In addition, Ouster's substantial cash position and recent capital raise provide financial flexibility to support its expansion.
By comparison, Innoviz's growth remains more dependent on the successful ramp of automotive and early-stage defense programs, while its earnings estimates have continued to weaken. Overall, Ouster appears better positioned than Innoviz for investors seeking exposure to the expanding LiDAR and Physical AI markets. Ouster carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), while Innoviz carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) at present.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
OUST vs. INVZ: Which LiDAR Manufacturer Is Worth Holding Onto Now?
Key Takeaways
Ouster, Inc. (OUST - Free Report) and Innoviz Technologies Ltd. (INVZ - Free Report) are prominent names in the rapidly evolving LiDAR and autonomous sensing industry. Both companies have developed advanced LiDAR technologies designed to support autonomous driving, robotics, industrial applications and other emerging use cases. Both companies are expanding beyond traditional automotive applications by leveraging their sensing and perception technologies to address growing opportunities across mobility, physical AI, defense and other markets.
Year to date, Ouster stock has rallied 102%, while Innoviz shares have plunged 54.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
A closer look at the companies’ fundamentals, growth catalysts and key risks can provide insight into the factors shaping their investment prospects.
The Case for OUST Stock
Ouster is extending beyond lidar into a unified sensing and perception platform spanning cameras, AI compute, sensor fusion, software and AI models. The StereoLabs acquisition has broadened its reach in robotics, while the ZED X Nano has drawn substantial customer uptake in humanoid and robotic manipulation applications. In the second quarter of 2026, Ouster also expanded relationships across industrial automation, mining, security, autonomous vehicles and robotics.
Deeper NVIDIA integration brings Rev8 to DRIVE and Jetson platforms, simplifying deployment for customers building Physical AI systems. As autonomy moves into more complex real-world settings, this broader product stack can increase Ouster's relevance across industrial, robotics, smart infrastructure and automotive markets.
Rev8 appears to be Ouster's most important near-term product catalyst. The company is seeing strong customer adoption of its Rev8 OS1 Max native-color digital lidar. Payload integrators and drone manufacturers in the aerial mapping market are selecting the sensor for applications including utility corridor inspections, infrastructure monitoring and defense. Also, Ouster is strengthening its collaboration with Flyability, a specialist in confined-space inspection and mapping. The collaboration combines Flyability’s collision-tolerant Elios 3 drone with Ouster’s digital lidar technology to enable industrial operators to collect accurate 3D data in hazardous, inaccessible and GPS-denied environments.
Ouster's smart infrastructure momentum provides a visible deployment engine. In the second quarter of 2026, BlueCity supported a 42-location digital traffic twin in New Jersey and more than 30 intersections in Georgia. Ouster also secured an order covering several hundred intersections for the Utah Department of Transportation. Rev8-based advanced detection extends multimodal classification to 500 feet, opening higher-speed road applications, while Build America Buy America compliance makes Rev8 and BlueCity eligible for U.S. government-funded infrastructure projects. Ouster expects BlueCity and Gemini to become a larger portion of revenue over time as customers expand from initial deployments to broader citywide and statewide networks.
Ouster delivered its 14th consecutive quarter of product revenue growth in the second quarter of 2026. Product revenues rose 51% year over year to $53 million, while total sensor shipments exceeded 17,000 units. Continued adoption across industrial automation, infrastructure and robotics could support Ouster's long-term target of 30-50% annual revenue growth. The company ended June 2026 with $263 million of cash, restricted cash and short-term investments and no debt, before raising about $191 million of net proceeds in July. The resulting liquidity is sufficient to fund the current operating plan through its path to profitability.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for OUST’s 2026 and 2027 loss per share has widened 4 cents and narrowed 18 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Case for INVZ Stock
Innoviz is expanding beyond automotive LiDAR into defense and homeland security through its new Perciz brand. This market is a potential multibillion-dollar opportunity for the company, supported by rising government spending in Israel, the United States, Europe and other regions. The company has already secured its first major defense order worth $3.5 million for several hundred LiDAR units used in Counter-UAS and perimeter security applications. Six companies have publicly announced engagements with Innoviz, while the company is in discussions with dozens of additional potential customers. It expects non-automotive revenues to rise from 1% in 2025 to 10% in 2026 and 20-30% in 2027.
The defense and security business could improve Innoviz's revenue mix and profitability because LiDAR selling prices in these applications are expected to be significantly higher than in automotive. Defense ASPs can be an order of magnitude higher, while shorter sales cycles could also support faster revenue conversion. The company expects gross-margin improvement as defense unit shipments increase alongside NRE payments and automotive production. Innoviz reported positive gross margin in the second quarter and expects gross margins to remain positive for the full year. The combination of higher-value defense programs and increasing automotive volumes could therefore create operating leverage as the business scales.
However, a significant portion of Innoviz's expected growth depends on automotive and defense programs reaching important milestones and moving toward production. It expects the bulk of 2026 second-half revenues to arrive in the fourth quarter because of the timing of customer milestones and SOPs. Several automotive opportunities are still in development or evaluation rather than full production.
Similarly, the defense business is in its early stages, with the first large order only recently announced. Delays in SOPs, customer decisions, testing, integration or deployment could push revenue recognition into later periods. This creates considerable timing sensitivity around the company's revenue targets and near-term financial performance.
Innoviz is simultaneously expanding its automotive portfolio, developing perception software and entering defense and homeland security. This broader opportunity increases execution complexity. In automotive, the company operates as a Tier 1 and can be responsible for LiDAR integration and, in some cases, software.
In defense, it is primarily pursuing a Tier 2 model through system integrators to accelerate market entry. The company is also developing compute and tracking capabilities alongside LiDAR for Counter-UAS applications. Managing these different products, customer requirements, integrations and production ramps could place pressure on resources and execution. The company must scale these activities while maintaining product performance and meeting customer milestones.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for INVZ’s 2026 and 2027 loss per share has widened by 3 cents and 4 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Conclusion
Ouster has demonstrated stronger operating momentum, with 14 consecutive quarters of product revenue growth and a 51% year-over-year increase in product revenues in the second quarter of 2026. Its diversified exposure across industrial automation, robotics, infrastructure, defense and autonomous applications also provides multiple avenues for growth. In addition, Ouster's substantial cash position and recent capital raise provide financial flexibility to support its expansion.
By comparison, Innoviz's growth remains more dependent on the successful ramp of automotive and early-stage defense programs, while its earnings estimates have continued to weaken. Overall, Ouster appears better positioned than Innoviz for investors seeking exposure to the expanding LiDAR and Physical AI markets. Ouster carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), while Innoviz carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) at present.
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.