Ouster REV8 OS1 Max debuts live at Automate 2026

In May, Ouster announced Rev8, the first native color lidar, and its Rev8 OS1 Max made its first live demonstration at a major robotics and industrial show at Automate 2026 and the community showed up to see it in person.

It was a big week for Ouster at Automate 2026 in Chicago! Since its announcement in May, Rev8 has been generating strong interest across the robotics and industrial market. At Automate, attendees got to see the Rev8 OS1 Max in action: watching the native color point cloud render live, and seeing for themselves what native color lidar actually looks like in motion.

Rev8 OS1 Max: a hands-on look at robotics applications

Since Rev8 was announced on May 4, 2026, robotics and industrial teams have been following the sensor closely, and Automate gave the community a chance to see the OS1 Max live and in person. The reaction at the Ouster booth was consistent: teams are excited that a single sensor can now capture depth and color in the same point cloud, because it removes a real pain point, the complex calibration and sensor fusion work required to combine color from a camera with depth from a lidar. Attendees were eager to get hands-on with the sensors to see what native color could mean for their own calibration pipelines and applications.

A look at how robotics and industrial teams are already putting Rev8 native color lidar to work:

• Industrial localization and collision avoidance: Combining color and depth in a single stream helps equipment localize within a facility and detect and avoid obstacles more reliably than depth data alone.

• Robotics environmental awareness and navigation: Robots can combine appearance and geometry in a single data stream for environmental awareness and navigation, object recognition, distinguishing similar-looking parts, and moving through cluttered environments, all without maintaining a separate camera-to-lidar calibration.

Live demonstrations at the Ouster booth

The Ouster booth drew a steady crowd from the time doors opened. We ran live demonstrations of both the Rev8 OS1 Max and the Rev8 OS1, streaming their native color point clouds in real-time, and conference attendees were eager to see native color 3D data streaming right in front of them.

The reaction was immediate and positive. For a lot of visitors, this was their first opportunity to see a color point cloud generated live, and the booth stayed busy throughout the show. We also ran the Stereolabs Dimensioning demo, giving attendees a look at Stereolabs' technology in action.

Ouster and Stereolabs across the show floor

Beyond our own booth, Ouster and Stereolabs technology showed up throughout Automate 2026, embedded in the booths and products of the customers and partners building on top of it.

MiR

MiR featured Ouster lidar sensors as part of its autonomous mobile robot platform display, demonstrating how Ouster's perception technology supports reliable navigation in dynamic warehouse and industrial environments.

Boston Dynamics

Boston Dynamics showcased Velodyne lidar sensors, part of the Ouster family, integrated into its robotics platform, highlighting how digital lidar supports advanced mobility and perception use cases in robotics.

Dexmate

Dexmate featured Stereolabs cameras on its Vega robot, another example of Stereolabs' perception technology in action across the robotics ecosystem.

Fanuc

Fanuc featured Stereolabs cameras in its booth, demonstrating how Stereolabs' perception technology plugs into industrial automation and manufacturing workflows.

Franka Robotics

Franka Robotics featured Stereolabs cameras as part of its robotics platform on the show floor.

Roboligent

Roboligent showcased Stereolabs cameras as part of its robotics platform, reinforcing the breadth of use cases Stereolabs technology supports across the robotics ecosystem.

Why robotics and industrial customers choose Ouster

Automate reinforced something we hear from customers every day: in a market full of sensor options, Ouster's combination of performance, reliability, and open-source ecosystem is what makes the difference.

Native color: Rev8 is the world's first lidar family to capture color and 3D depth simultaneously, fused at the silicon level rather than stitched together in software. Every point carries color from the moment it's captured, eliminating the calibration headaches of traditional camera-lidar fusion.

Up to double the range and resolution: Powered by Ouster's next-generation L4 and L4 Max Ouster Silicon, Rev8 delivers up to double the range and resolution of the previous generation, giving robotics and industrial teams a meaningfully longer, sharper look at their environment.

Reliability where it counts: Designed for functional safety and engineered to perform in extreme lighting and environmental conditions, Ouster sensors are trusted to operate reliably in the field, not just in a controlled demo.

Open-source ecosystem, easy integration: An open, well-documented architecture means robotics and industrial teams can integrate Ouster sensors into their existing stacks quickly, without being locked into a closed system.

Manufacturing scale and long-term support: Ouster's manufacturing scale and commitment to long-term product support give customers confidence that the sensor they design in today will still be supported, and available, years down the line.

Looking ahead

Automate 2026 made clear that the appetite for richer, more reliable perception in robotics and industrial automation has never been stronger. Thank you to Automate, to MiR, Boston Dynamics, Dexmate, Fanuc, Franka Robotics, Dexmate, and Roboligent for showcasing our technology on the show floor, and to every attendee who stopped by to see Rev8 in action.

Chicago was a strong first live outing for Rev8 OS1 Max native color, and we're just getting started. We're excited to keep bringing native color lidar to more robots, more factory floors, and more of the physical world.

Curious what Rev8 could do for your application? Talk to Sales to see it for yourself.