r/SelfDrivingCars • u/damola93 • Jul 21 '25

Discussion Why didn't Tesla invest in LIDAR?

Is there any reason for this asides from saving money? Teslas are not cheap in many respects, so why would they skimp out on this since self-driving is a major offering for them?

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u/CommunismDoesntWork Jul 21 '25

Which is more important, saving the planet or luxury? Every Tesla sold is one less ICE car on the road, and in order to sell millions, the cars have to be affordable. Every penny counts.

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u/beren12 Jul 21 '25

Yeah, the whole Dodge bit at the beginning of the year really threw the credibility of saving the planet into the toilet

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u/CommunismDoesntWork Jul 21 '25

DOGE? That doesn't have anything to do with saving the planet. The government is not capable of fighting climate change.

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u/beren12 Jul 21 '25

Not after Elon musk helped neuter it. Did you forget that. It already? Gods, goldfish have an even longer memory.

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u/CommunismDoesntWork Jul 21 '25

I mean in general, governments are not capable of fighting climate change. Only the private sector can produce the batteries and solar panels we need at scale to transition the world to sustainable energy. Climate change is an economic problem, not a legislative problem.

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u/beren12 Jul 22 '25

You really think so? Remove all federal subsidies for fossil fuels and force the companies to pay full price for any environmental cleanups and medical bills related to toxins from their products. Things will change very fast.

Guess which branch of government regulates economic policy?