Global regulations will continue to tighten around vehicle safety, environmental performance and data reliability. This trend favours a range of technologies, including radar, that offer robust performance across all weather and lighting conditions.

Companies that combine high performance, compact design, and AI-driven processing solutions will benefit from this regulatory momentum as automakers will seek out scalable and software-upgradable sensing platforms in 2026.

LiDAR has been crucial to the development of autonomous driving; however, we’re moving into a new phase of development where the winners in the industry will be the ones who create the most advanced system architecture.

Real autonomy next year will be defined by this overall system design, instead of sensor performance being the only thing that matters. Within the focus on design, crucial factors will include the ability to scale manufacturing, cost efficiency and reliable application across differing environments.

Autonomous driving won’t become a day-to-day reality based solely on the components and technology within vehicles. One often overlooked aspect is how autonomous cars will need to rely on a network of sensors fused into the roadside to operate efficiently and safely. Next year, this will become more noticeable on our roads.

This ‘network autonomy’ will require the integration of sensors into existing road infrastructure, like roundabouts, with clear benefits including earlier hazard detection, removal of blind spots and improvement in traffic performance.

As robotaxis become more prevalent on our roads globally in 2026, there should be a realisation that this new mode of transport is not just a testbed for the future of taxis and ride-hailing apps.

If successfully cracked at scale, its impact will go far beyond this one use case to affect every aspect of mobility, including commercial vehicles moving goods, autonomy on highways and even the potential for urban driving assistants within vehicles.

The reality is that robotaxis are currently being road-tested in the most complex urban environments, while facing a near-zero tolerance level for failure from both the public and policymakers. Due to this challenging testing phase, robotaxis will be just the first part of foundational changes to the future of all modes of mobility.

Next year, we can expect an acceleration in convergence between electrification, digitalization, and sustainability in the automotive sector.

As electric and software-defined vehicles become mainstream, the need for advanced radar sensing will grow rapidly, not only for safety but also for energy optimisation, driver monitoring, and intelligent infrastructure connectivity. Sustainability will no longer be limited to reducing emissions; it will extend to the entire mobility ecosystem, including the electrification of existing internal-combustion vehicles and the use of recyclable materials and efficient components.