Teradar Raises $150 Million to Innovate Terahertz Sensors for Self-Driving Cars

Important Announcement: Boston-based startup Teradar announced its emergence from stealth mode, after successfully raising $150 million in a Series B funding round. The company is developing an innovative solid-state sensor that utilizes the terahertz (THz) range of the electromagnetic spectrum. The terahertz range typically lies between microwave and infrared waves, extending in frequency from 0.1 to 10 THz, which gives it unique properties making it capable of penetrating many non-conductive materials. Teradar's sensor uniquely combines the best features of radar sensors, such as no moving parts and the ability to penetrate harsh weather conditions like rain and fog, with the high accuracy and clarity provided by laser-based lidar sensors. [Source]

Terahertz Technology: Combining Radar Power and Lidar Accuracy

Innovative Sensor: The new technology promises long-range, high-accuracy, and affordable sensing capabilities, initially raising doubts. However, Teradar proved the effectiveness of its technology through demonstrations, such as those presented at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where it showcased the sensor's ability to analyze real-time scenes to representatives from major automotive manufacturers.

Successful Funding Round and Strategic Partnerships

Investor Support: These demonstrations, in addition to the technology itself, helped the company secure $150 million in funding from prominent investors such as Capricorn Investment Group, Lockheed Martin's investment arm, IBEX Investors specializing in mobility, and the new defense-focused VXI Capital fund.

Future Goals and Focus on the Automotive Industry

Ambitious Plans: Teradar claims to be already working with five major automotive manufacturers from the United States and Europe to validate the technology, and anticipates winning a contract to place the company's sensors in a 2028 model year vehicle, meaning they will need to be ready by 2027. Teradar is also working with three Tier 1 suppliers, on whom the company will rely for manufacturing.

Broad Applications: Teradar's short-term goal is for automotive companies to use its sensors to power advanced driver-assistance systems and even autonomous driving systems. The "modular terahertz engine," as the sensor is officially known, can be customized to suit any of these applications, and CEO Matt Carey says the price will range between radar and laser (a few hundred dollars, not a few thousand).

The Vision Behind Teradar: Overcoming Sensing Challenges

Personal Motivation: Carey was inspired to start Teradar after a friend died in a car accident, which was a result of difficult weather conditions that existing sensors could not overcome. In such conditions, where there is a lot of glare, cameras typically struggle, and lasers are affected by fog, while radar can only help with its limited ability to provide lower accuracy. Here, the importance of terahertz technology emerges, as it features a unique ability to penetrate fog, smoke, dust, and pass through many non-conductive materials, providing clear vision in harsh weather conditions where other technologies fail. [Source]

Teradar's Development and Previous Terahertz Challenges

Founding Journey: In 2021, Carey began talking with his colleague Gregory Charvat, CTO of Humatics, about this apparent problem. Soon after, they launched Teradar, with MIT's non-profit incubator The Engine leading its seed round.

Past Challenges: There could be other applications for Teradar's sensor, such as the defense sector, and there is clear interest there based on the company's shareholders. Currently, the company is almost entirely focused on automotive business. Carey acknowledges that he is not the first to attempt to harness the terahertz part of the spectrum; there has been a significant amount of academic research, and some attempts to commercialize the technology before. But much of that focused on industrial or security applications. [Source]

Current Success: He says that recent advancements in the silicon industry, coupled with a dedicated team of experts - including third co-founder Nick Siwek, whom Carey described as "undoubtedly the best terahertz chip designer in the world" - allowed them to move quickly and attract major automotive manufacturers. It wasn't easy; getting their attention, financial support, and track time is extremely difficult, and the fact that they've provided all these things means a lot. In other words: now they believe him.

Wide Applications of Terahertz Technology

The capabilities of terahertz technology extend beyond the automotive sector to encompass a wide range of other applications in vital and diverse fields:

• Medical Imaging: Terahertz waves are non-ionizing, meaning they do not harm living tissue or DNA, making them a safe alternative to X-rays. They can penetrate tissues with low water content and identify differences in water content and tissue density, opening the door for effective epithelial cancer detection, 3D dental imaging, and even rapid COVID-19 screening. [Source]
• Security Field: Terahertz technology is used for its ability to penetrate fabrics and plastics, which can contribute to security screening operations for detecting hidden weapons remotely. Different materials have unique "spectral fingerprints" in the terahertz range, allowing for the combination of spectral identification and imaging for accurate detection. [Source]
• Communications Field: Despite challenges related to atmospheric absorption of terahertz waves, which limits terrestrial communication range to tens of meters, the enormous unlicensed bandwidth in this part of the spectrum (ten times larger than the millimeter-wave range) makes it highly attractive for data transfer and future networking applications, such as the anticipated 6G standard. [Source] Record data transfer speeds have also been achieved wirelessly using terahertz waves, with a team from Tokyo Institute of Technology reaching 3 gigabits per second in 2012, and Rohm Corporation in collaboration with Osaka University reaching 1.5 gigabits per second in 2011, while Nature magazine reported error-free video transmission at 50 gigabits per second. [Source]

Revolutionary Potential: These multiple examples highlight the revolutionary potential of terahertz technology across various industries, confirming that Teradar's efforts are part of a broader global trend to harness this promising part of the electromagnetic spectrum.