Velodyne Lidar (VLDR) 10-K1 Mar 222021 FY Annual reportFinancial data

Company Profile

Cover

Cover - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Cover - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2021	Feb. 21, 2022	Jun. 30, 2021
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-K
Document Annual Report	true
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2021
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Document Transition Report	false
Entity File Number	001-38703
Entity Registrant Name	VELODYNE LIDAR, INC.
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity Tax Identification Number	83-1138508
Entity Address, Address Line One	5521 Hellyer Avenue
Entity Address, City or Town	San Jose
Entity Address, State or Province	CA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	95138
City Area Code	669
Local Phone Number	275-2251
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Small Business	false
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
ICFR Auditor Attestation Flag	true
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Public Float			$ 1,134
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		198,141,550
Documents Incorporated by Reference	Information required in response to Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K is hereby incorporated by reference from the registrant’s definitive Proxy Statement for its 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Except as expressly incorporated by reference, the registrant’s Proxy Statement shall not be deemed to be a part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The registrant intends to file its definitive Proxy Statement within 120 days after its fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2021
Entity Central Index Key	0001745317
Common Stock
Document Information [Line Items]
Title of 12(b) Security	Common stock, par value $0.0001 per share
Trading Symbol	VLDR
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Warrant
Document Information [Line Items]
Title of 12(b) Security	Warrants, each exercisable for three-quarters of one share of common stock
Trading Symbol	VLDRW
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ

Audit Information

Audit Information	12 Months Ended
Audit Information	Dec. 31, 2021
Audit Information [Abstract]
Auditor Firm ID	185
Auditor Name	KPMG LLP
Auditor Location	Santa Clara, California

Consolidated Balance Sheets

Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 24,064	$ 204,648
Short-term investments	270,357	145,636
Accounts receivable, net	8,881	13,979
Inventories, net	9,299	18,132
Prepaid and other current assets	14,822	22,319
Total current assets	327,423	404,714
Property, plant and equipment, net	14,710	16,805
Goodwill	1,189	1,189
Intangible assets, net	724	627
Contract assets	12,962	8,440
Other assets	18,413	937
Total assets	375,421	432,712
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	5,105	7,721
Accrued expense and other current liabilities	35,651	50,349
Contract liabilities	6,348	7,323
Total current liabilities	47,104	65,393
Long-term tax liabilities	443	569
Other long-term liabilities	28,611	25,927
Total liabilities	76,158	91,889
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity:
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 25,000,000 shares authorized, zero shares issued and outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 2,250,000,000 shares authorized; 197,346,675 and 175,912,194 shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively	20	18
Additional paid-in capital	825,988	656,717
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(412)	(230)
Accumulated deficit	(526,333)	(315,682)
Total stockholders’ equity	299,263	340,823
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$ 375,421	$ 432,712

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Pa

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]
Preferred stock, par value (in USD per share)	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Preferred stock, shares authorized (in shares)	25,000,000	25,000,000
Preferred stock, shares issued (in shares)	0	0
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	0	0
Common stock, par value (in USD per share)	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)	2,250,000,000	2,250,000,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	197,346,675	175,912,194
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	197,346,675	175,912,194

Consolidated Statements of Oper

Consolidated Statements of Operations - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Revenue	$ 61,924	$ 95,362	$ 101,398
Cost of revenue	67,838	70,246	71,630
Gross profit (loss)	(5,914)	25,116	29,768
Operating expenses:
Research and development	77,863	88,080	56,850
Sales and marketing	68,025	31,753	21,873
General and administrative	70,307	65,732	20,058
Gain on sale of assets held-for-sale	0	(7,529)	0
Restructuring	0	984	0
Total operating expenses	216,195	179,020	98,781
Operating loss	(222,109)	(153,904)	(69,013)
Interest income	448	152	1,146
Interest expense	(80)	(106)	(77)
Other income (expense), net	10,150	(90)	35
Loss before income taxes	(211,591)	(153,948)	(67,909)
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes	645	(4,084)	(683)
Net loss	$ (212,236)	$ (149,864)	$ (67,226)
Net loss per share:
Basic (in USD per share)	$ (1.09)	$ (1.01)	$ (0.50)
Diluted (in USD per share)	$ (1.09)	$ (1.01)	$ (0.50)
Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share:
Basic (in shares)	193,982,168	148,088,589	133,942,714
Diluted (in shares)	193,982,168	148,088,589	133,942,714
Product
Revenue	$ 48,002	$ 68,355	$ 81,424
Cost of revenue	67,313	69,115	69,903
License and services
Revenue	13,922	27,007	19,974
Cost of revenue	$ 525	$ 1,131	$ 1,727

Consolidated Statements of Comp

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Net loss	$ (212,236)	$ (149,864)	$ (67,226)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax:
Changes in unrealized gain on available for sale securities	(168)	(60)	17
Foreign currency translation adjustments	(14)	46	(85)
Total other comprehensive loss, net of tax	(182)	(14)	(68)
Comprehensive loss	$ (212,418)	$ (149,878)	$ (67,294)

Consolidated Statements of Stoc

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Total	As Originally Reported	Retrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Prior Year Adjustment of Warrants	Preferred StockSeries A Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)	Preferred StockSeries A Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)As Originally Reported	Preferred StockSeries A Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)Retrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Preferred StockSeries B Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)	Preferred StockSeries B Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)As Originally Reported	Preferred StockSeries B Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)Retrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Preferred StockSeries B-1 Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)	Preferred StockSeries B-1 Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)As Originally Reported	Preferred StockSeries B-1 Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)Retrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Common Stock (Pre-Combination)	Common Stock (Pre-Combination)As Originally Reported	Common Stock (Pre-Combination)Retrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Common Stock	Common StockAs Originally Reported	Common StockRetrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Additional Paid in Capital	Additional Paid in CapitalAs Originally Reported	Additional Paid in CapitalRetrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Additional Paid in CapitalPrior Year Adjustment of Warrants	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Accumulated Other Comprehensive LossAs Originally Reported	Accumulated Other Comprehensive LossRetrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Accumulated Deficit	Accumulated DeficitAs Originally Reported	Accumulated DeficitRetrospective Application of the Recapitalization	Accumulated DeficitPrior Year Adjustment of Warrants
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2018					0	8,772,852	(8,772,852)	0	1,375,440	(1,375,440)	0	0	0	0	34,252,578	(34,252,578)	133,033,927	0	133,033,927
Balance at Dec. 31, 2018	$ 93,615	$ 93,615	$ 0		$ 0	$ 1	$ (1)	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 3	$ (3)	$ 13	$ 0	$ 13	$ 190,540	$ 190,549	$ (9)		$ (148)	$ (148)	$ 0	$ (96,790)	$ (96,790)	$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issuance of convertible preferred stock, net of issuance cost (in shares)																	4,878,048
Issuance of convertible preferred stock, net of issuance cost	49,790																$ 1			49,789
Share-based compensation	135																			135
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	(68)																							(68)
Net loss	(67,226)																										(67,226)
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2019					0			0			0			0			137,911,975
Balance at Dec. 31, 2019	76,246				$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 14			240,464				(216)			(164,016)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issuance of convertible preferred stock, net of issuance cost (in shares)																	1,951,219
Issuance of convertible preferred stock, net of issuance cost	19,919																			19,919
Recapitalization transaction, net of transaction cost (in shares)																	29,025,846
Recapitalization transaction, net of transaction cost	222,103																$ 3			222,100
Repurchase of common stock (in shares)																	(175,744)
Repurchase of common stock	(1,802)																										(1,802)
Issuance of common stock under warrant exercises (in shares)																	7,198,898
Issuance of common stock under warrant exercises	82,735																$ 1			82,734
Share-based compensation	91,500																			91,500
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	(14)																							(14)
Net loss	(149,864)																										(149,864)
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2020					0			0			0			0			175,912,194
Balance at Dec. 31, 2020	340,823			$ 0	$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 18			656,717			$ (1,585)	(230)			(315,682)			$ 1,585
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issuance of common stock under warrant exercises (in shares)																	6,978,061
Issuance of common stock under warrant exercises	80,248																$ 1			80,247
Issuance of common stock under employee stock award plans, net of taxes (in shares)																	14,456,420
Issuance of common stock under employee stock award plans, net of taxes	3,522																$ 1			3,521
Share-based compensation	87,088																			87,088
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	(182)																							(182)
Net loss	(212,236)																										(212,236)
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2021					0			0			0			0			197,346,675
Balance at Dec. 31, 2021	$ 299,263				$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 0			$ 20			$ 825,988			$ (1,600)	$ (412)			$ (526,333)			$ 1,600

Consolidated Statements of St_2

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Apr. 01, 2020
Stock issuance costs	$ 1,143	$ 0
Transaction cost	29,100
Warrant issuance cost	52
Series B-1 Convertible Preferred Stock (Pre-Combination)
Stock issuance costs	$ 81	$ 210
Price per share (in USD per share)			$ 10.25

Condensed Consolidated Statemen

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net loss	$ (212,236)	$ (149,864)	$ (67,226)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	8,452	8,394	7,993
Reduction of operating lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets	3,052	0	0
Write-off of deferred IPO costs	0	3,548	0
Stock-based compensation	87,088	91,500	135
Gain on sale of assets held-for-sale	0	(7,529)	0
Provision for doubtful accounts	2,331	511	110
Deferred income taxes	3	4	(1,941)
Gain from forgiveness of PPP loan	(10,124)	0	0
Accretion on short-term investments	1,688	0	0
Other	22	137	(358)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable	2,506	(2,627)	9,573
Inventories, net	8,833	1,619	(850)
Prepaid and other current assets	(1,078)	172	(3,602)
Contract assets	(5,022)	(11,253)	38
Other assets	166	53	1,080
Accounts payable	(2,829)	687	(45)
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	(554)	(6,680)	13,609
Contract liabilities	(2,968)	2,891	(1,746)
Net cash used in operating activities	(120,670)	(68,437)	(43,230)
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchase of property, plant and equipment and intangibles	(5,641)	(3,277)	(5,225)
Proceeds from sale of assets held-for-sale	0	12,275	0
Proceeds from sales of short-term investments	26,422	0	8,903
Proceeds from maturities of short-term investments	188,223	2,200	53,650
Purchase of short-term investments	(340,951)	(145,725)	(28,823)
Considerations paid for acquisition	0	0	(2,473)
Proceeds from repayment of stockholder notes	0	0	3,512
Investment in notes receivable	(750)	0	0
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	(132,697)	(134,527)	29,544
Cash flows from financing activities:
Proceeds from issuance of preferred stock, net of issuance costs	0	19,919	49,790
Proceeds from (payments for) Business Combination, net of transaction costs	(20,005)	247,039	0
Repurchase of common stock	0	(1,802)	0
Proceeds from warrant exercises, net of issuance costs of $52	89,270	73,713	0
Proceeds from common stock issuance under equity incentive plans	3,560	0	0
Tax withholding payment for vested equity awards	(37)	0	0
Cash paid for IPO costs	0	(1,143)	0
Proceeds from notes payable	0	10,000	0
Net cash provided by financing activities	72,788	347,726	49,790
Effect of exchange rate fluctuations on cash and cash equivalents	(5)	(118)	(4)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(180,584)	144,644	36,100
Beginning cash and cash equivalents	204,648	60,004	23,904
Ending cash and cash equivalents	24,064	204,648	60,004
Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information:
Cash paid for interest	80	106	77
Cash paid for (received from) income taxes, net	820	(7,800)	545
Cash paid for operating leases	4,263	0	0
Supplemental disclosure of noncash investing and financing activities:
Changes in accrued purchases of property, plant and equipment, and intangibles	844	145	(115)
ROU assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities	498	0	0
Transaction costs included in accrued liabilities	5,000	25,057	0
Receipt of equity shares from customer in satisfaction of accounts receivable	$ 297	$ 0	$ 0

Condensed Consolidated Statem_2

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Parenthetical) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)
Stock issuance costs	$ 0
Public Warrants
Stock issuance costs	$ 52

Description of Business and Sum

Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Description of Business, Background and Nature of Operations Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (the “Company”, “Velodyne” or “Velodyne Lidar”) provides smart vision solutions that are advancing the development of safe automated systems throughout the world. The Company’s technology, which is used in various automotive and non-automotive applications, is empowering the autonomous revolution by allowing machines to see their surroundings in real-time and in 3D. Graf Industrial Corp. (“Graf”), the Company’s predecessor, was originally incorporated in Delaware as a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). On September 29, 2020 (the “Closing Date”), Graf consummated a business combination (the “Business Combination”) with Velodyne Lidar, Inc. (the “pre-combination Velodyne”). Immediately upon the consummation of the Business Combination, Graf merged into the pre-combination Velodyne, with the pre-combination Velodyne surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Graf changed its name to Velodyne Lidar, Inc. and the pre-combination Velodyne changed its name to Velodyne Lidar USA, Inc. Refer to Note 2, Business Combination for further discussion of the Business Combination. On September 30, 2020, Velodyne Lidar’s common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “VLDR” and “VLDRW,” respectively. The Company has evaluated how it is organized and managed and has identified only one operating segment. Basis of Presentation The consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The Business Combination is accounted for as a reverse recapitalization as the pre-combination Velodyne was determined to be the accounting acquirer under Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”)’s Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 805, Business Combinations. In connection with the Business Combination, outstanding capital stock of the pre-combination Velodyne was converted into common stock of the Company, par value $0.0001 per share, representing a recapitalization, and the net assets of the Company were acquired at historical cost, with no goodwill or intangible assets recorded. The pre-combination Velodyne was deemed to be the predecessor of the Company, and the consolidated assets and liabilities and results of operations prior to the Closing Date are those of the pre-combination Velodyne. The shares and corresponding capital amounts and net loss per share available to common stockholders, prior to the Business Combination, have been retroactively restated as shares reflecting the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement. The number of shares of preferred stock was also retroactively restated in shares reflecting the exchange ratio, and the carrying amounts of preferred stock are based on the fair value of its redemption amount on each reporting date. All preferred stock was converted into shares of the Company’s common stock on the Closing Date. Refer to Note 10, Stockholders’ Equity, and Note 12, Net Loss Per Share, for further discussion of the recapitalization and share adjustments. Liquidity The Company has funded its operations primarily through the Business Combination, PIPE offering, public warrant exercises, private placements of the pre-combination Velodyne preferred stock, employee stock option exercises and ESPP share purchases, and sales to customers. As of December 31, 2021, the Company’s existing sources of liquidity included cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $294.4 million and available borrowing capacity of $25.0 million under a revolving credit facility. The Company has incurred losses and negative cash flows from operations. If the Company incurs additional losses in the future, it may need to raise additional capital through issuances of equity and debt. There can be no assurance that the Company would be able to raise such capital. However, management believes that the Company’s existing sources of liquidity are adequate to fund its operations for at least twelve months from the date the audited consolidated financial statements were available for issuance. Concentration of Risk Financial instruments that subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, and accounts receivable. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalents, and short-term investments with high-quality financial institutes with investment-grade ratings. A majority of the cash balances are with U.S. banks and are insured to the extent defined by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The Company’s accounts receivable are derived from customers located both inside and outside the U.S. The Company mitigates its credit risks by performing ongoing credit evaluations of its customers’ financial conditions and requires customer advance payments in certain circumstances. The Company does not require collateral. The Company’s concentration of risk related to accounts receivable and accounts payable was as follows: December 31, 2021 2020 Number of customers accounted for 10% or more of accounts receivable 3 3 Number of vendors accounted for 10% or more of accounts payable 1 3 Two customers accounted for a total of 30% and 47%, respectively, of the Company’s accounts receivable as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. One vendor accounted for 28% and 34%, respectively, of accounts payable as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. Use of Estimates The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include standalone selling price (“SSP”) for each distinct performance obligation in its customer contracts, total estimated future patents and their corresponding estimated development costs, total estimated costs and related progress towards complete satisfaction of performance obligation in certain services arrangements, allowances for doubtful accounts, inventory reserves, warranty reserves, valuation allowance for deferred tax assets, stock-based compensation, useful lives of property, plant, and equipment and intangible assets, income tax uncertainties, and other loss contingencies. The Company bases its estimates on historical experience and also on assumptions that it believes are reasonable. Actual results could differ from those estimates, and such differences could be material to the Company’s consolidated financial condition and results of operations. Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments The Company considers all highly liquid investments with original maturity of three months or less at date of purchase to be cash equivalents. Short-term investments generally consist of commercial paper and corporate debt securities. They are classified as available-for-sale securities and are recognized at fair value. Marketable securities with maturities greater than one year are classified as current assets because management considers all marketable securities to be available to support current operations. The short-term investments are carried at fair value and the unrealized gains and losses, net of tax, are reported as a separate component of accumulated other comprehensive loss within the stockholders’ equity. Accounts Receivable Trade accounts receivable are recorded at the invoiced amount and do not bear interest. Accounts receivable are reduced by an allowance for doubtful accounts, which includes estimated losses that result from uncollectible accounts receivable. The Company determines the allowance by considering a number of factors, including the length of time trade accounts receivable are past due, its customer’s current financial condition and payment history, the condition of the general economy and the industry as a whole, and other relevant facts and circumstances. The Company continuously monitors collections and payments from its customers and maintains a provision for estimated credit losses based upon the aforementioned factors and any specific customer collection issues that have been identified. Significant changes in one or more of these considerations may require adjustments affecting the net income (loss) and net carrying value of the account receivable. Provisions for the estimated allowance for doubtful accounts are recorded in general and administrative expense at the end of each reporting period. The Company writes off accounts receivable against the allowance after all means of collection have been exhausted and the potential for recovery is considered remote. Changes in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts were as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Beginning balance $ 876 $ 467 $ 357 Charged to costs and expenses 2,331 511 110 Uncollectible accounts written off, net of recoveries — (102) — Ending balance $ 3,207 $ 876 $ 467 The Company does not have any off-balance-sheet credit exposure related to its customers. Inventories Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or estimated net realizable value. Costs are computed under the standard cost method, which approximates actual costs determined on the first-in, first-out basis. The Company charges cost of revenue for write-downs of inventories which are obsolete or in excess of anticipated demand based on a consideration of marketability and product life cycle stage, product development plans, component cost trends, demand forecasts, historical revenue, and assumptions about future demand and market conditions. At the point of loss recognition, a new, lower-cost basis for that inventory is established, and subsequent changes in facts and circumstances do not result in restoration or increase in the newly established cost basis. The net decrease in the Company’s inventory reserve was $0.1 million, $0.7 million and $1.8 million for 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. Property, Plant, and Equipment Property, plant, and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization is calculated based on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets. Additions, major improvements and betterments are capitalized, and maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred. Assets are held in asset under construction until placed in service, upon which date, the Company begins to depreciate the assets over their estimated useful lives. The estimated useful lives of the assets are as follows: buildings, 15-30 years; building improvements, 7-15 years, leasehold improvements, the lesser of 5 years or the lease term; machinery and equipment, furniture and fixtures, vehicles and software, 3-5 years. Assets Held for Sale The Company considers assets to be held for sale when management approves and commits to a plan to actively market the assets for sale at a reasonable price in relation to its fair value, the assets are available for immediate sale in their present condition, an active program to locate a buyer and other actions required to complete the sale have been initiated, the sale of the assets is expected to be completed within one year and it is unlikely that significant changes will be made to the plan. Upon designation as held for sale, the Company ceases to record deprecation expenses and measures the assets at the lower of their carrying value or estimated fair value less costs to sell. Assets held for sale are included as other current assets in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets and the gain or loss from sale of assets held for sale is included in the Company's operating expenses. Business Combinations For acquisitions meeting the definition of a business combination, the acquisition method of accounting is used. The acquisition date is the date on which the Company obtains operating control over the acquired business. The consideration paid is determined on the acquisition date and the acquisition-related costs, such as professional fees, are excluded from the consideration transferred and are expensed as incurred. Assets acquired and liabilities assumed by the Company are recorded at their estimated fair values, while goodwill is measured as the excess of the consideration transferred over the fair value of the net identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed. Goodwill Goodwill represents the difference between the purchase price and the fair value of the identifiable tangible and intangible net assets acquired and liabilities assumed when accounted for using the purchase method of accounting. Goodwill is not amortized, but reviewed for impairment. Goodwill is reviewed annually in the fourth quarter, and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the goodwill may not be recoverable. When evaluating recoverability, the Company compares the fair value of the reporting unit to its carrying value. If the carrying value of the net assets assigned to the reporting unit exceeds the fair value of our reporting unit, the Company would record an impairment loss equal to the difference. Long-Lived Assets Long-lived assets, such as property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and other long-term assets, are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If circumstances require a long-lived asset or asset group be tested for possible impairment, the Company first compares undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by that asset or asset group to its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of the long-lived asset or asset group is not recoverable on an undiscounted cash flow basis, an impairment is recognized to the extent that the carrying amount exceeds its fair value. Fair value is determined using various valuation techniques including discounted cash flow models, quoted market values, as considered necessary. No impairment loss was recognized for all years presented. Foreign Currency The U.S. dollar is the functional currency of the Company’s consolidated entities operating in the U.S. and certain of its subsidiaries operating outside of the U.S. For transactions entered into a currency other than its functional currency, the monetary assets and liabilities are re-measured into U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate as of the applicable balance sheet date, and all non-monetary assets and liabilities are re-measured at historical rates. Income and expenses are re-measured at the average exchange rate prevailing during the period. Gains and losses resulting from the re-measurement of these subsidiaries’ financial statements are included in the consolidated statements of operations. For foreign subsidiaries whose functional currency is the local currency, assets and liabilities are translated at the local current exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date, and income and expense accounts are translated at the average exchange rates during the period. The resulting translation adjustments are included in accumulated other comprehensive loss. Gains and losses resulting from foreign exchange transactions and revaluation of monetary assets and liabilities in non-functional currencies are included in other income (expense) in the consolidated statements of operations. Net foreign exchange gain (loss) recorded in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations was insignificant for all periods presented. Revenue Recognition The Company accounts for a contract with a customer when both parties have approved the contract and are committed to perform their respective obligations, each party’s rights can be identified, payment terms can be identified, the contract has commercial substance, and it is probable that the Company will collect substantially all of the consideration it is entitled to. Revenue is recognized when, or as, performance obligations are satisfied by transferring control of a promised product or service to a customer. Nature of Products and Services and Revenue Recognition The majority of the Company’s revenue comes from product sales of lidar sensors to direct customers and distributors. Revenue is recognized at a point in time when control of the goods are transferred to the customer, generally occurring upon shipment or delivery dependent upon the terms of the underlying contract. Product sales to certain customers may require customer acceptance due to performance acceptance criteria that is considered more than a formality. For these product sales, revenue is recognized upon the expiration of the customer acceptance period. For custom products that require engineering and development based on customer requirements, the Company recognizes revenue over time using an output method based on units of product shipped to date relative to total production units under the contract. Amounts billed to customers for shipping and handling are included in revenue. Taxes collected from customers and remitted to governmental authorities are excluded from revenue on the net basis of accounting. Accounts receivable are due under normal trade terms, typically 60 days or less. The Company’s license and services revenue consist primarily of product development, validation and repair services, intellectual property (“IP”) license and royalties revenue. The obligation to provide services is generally satisfied over time, with the customer simultaneously receiving and consuming the benefits as the Company satisfies its performance obligations. For product development and validation service projects, the Company bills and recognizes revenue as the services are performed. For these arrangements, control is transferred over as the Company’s inputs incurred to complete the project; therefore, revenue is recognized over the service period with the measure of progress using the input method based on labor costs incurred to total labor cost (“cost-to-cost”) as the services are provided. For product repair service, revenue is recognized when the repair services are complete and repaired products are shipped to customer. The Company licenses rights to its IP to certain customers and collects royalties based on customer’s product sales. IP revenue recognition is dependent on the nature and terms of each agreement. The Company recognizes license revenue upon delivery of the IP if there are no substantive future obligations to perform under the arrangement. Contract liabilities are recorded when license payments received from licensees relating to long-term license contracts for which the Company has future obligations under the license agreements. The Company classifies contract liabilities as current if the Company expects to recognize the related revenue over the next 12 months from the balance sheet date. Royalties from the license of IP are recognized at the later of the period the sales occur or the satisfaction of the performance obligation to which some or all of the royalties have been allocated. Arrangements with Multiple Performance Obligations When a contract involves multiple performance obligations, the Company accounts for individual products and services separately if the customer can benefit from the product or service on its own or with other resources that are readily available to the customer and the product or service is separately identifiable from other promises in the arrangement. The consideration is allocated between separate performance obligations in proportion to their estimated SSP. The SSP reflects the price the Company would charge for a specific product or service if it were sold separately in similar circumstances and to similar customers. If the selling price is not directly observable, the Company generally uses the cost plus margin approach to estimate SSP. For patent cross-license arrangements, the Company estimates the SSP of the patents based on historical or forecasted development costs for existing and future patents granted or to be granted to customers. Costs related to products delivered are recognized in the period revenue is recognized. The Company provides standard product warranties for a term of typically one year to ensure that its products comply with agreed-upon specifications. Standard warranties are considered to be assurance type warranties and are not accounted for as separate performance obligations. Please see Product Warranty for accounting policy on standard warranties. The Company also provides service type extended warranties for an additional term ranging up to two Other Policies, Judgments and Practical Expedients Costs to obtain a contract. The Company generally expenses the incremental costs of obtaining a contract when incurred because the amortization period for these costs would be less than one year. These costs primarily relate to sales commissions and are recorded at the time of the customer order or product shipment in sales and marketing expense in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations. Commission expense was $0.4 million, $0.7 million and $0.5 million, respectively, for 2021, 2020 and 2019. Right of return. The Company’s general terms and conditions for its contracts do not contain a right of return that allows the customer to return products and receive a credit. Therefore the Company does not estimate returns and generally recognizes revenue at contract price upon product shipment or delivery. Remaining performance obligations. Revenue allocated to remaining performance obligations represents the transaction price allocated to the performance obligations that are unsatisfied, or partially unsatisfied. It includes unearned revenue and amounts that will be invoiced and recognized as revenue in future periods and does not include contracts where the customer is not committed. The customer is not considered committed where they are able to terminate for convenience without payment of a substantive penalty under the contract. Additionally, as a practical expedient, the Company has not disclosed the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for contracts with an original expected length of one year or less. The amount of the transaction price allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations with a duration of more than 12 months is recorded in long-term contract liability. Significant financing component. In certain arrangements, the Company receives payment from a customer either before or after the performance obligation has been satisfied. The expected timing difference between the payment and satisfaction of performance obligations for the vast majority of the Company’s contracts is one year or less; therefore, the Company applies a practical expedient and does not consider the effects of the time value of money. The Company’s contracts with customer prepayment terms do not include a significant financing component because the primary purpose is not to receive financing from the customers. For arrangements with licenses of intellectual property that include subsequent minimum royalty payments more than one year, the Company adjusts the amount of recorded revenue to reflect the effects of the time value of money if the timing of payments agreed to by the parties to the contract (either explicitly or implicitly) provides the customer with a significant benefit of financing. The effect of the significant financing component will be recognized as interest income separately from revenue from contracts with customers. Contract modifications. The Company may modify contracts to offer customers additional products or services. Each of the additional products and services are generally considered distinct from those products or services transferred to the customer before the modification. The Company evaluates whether the contract price for the additional products and services reflects the standalone selling price as adjusted for facts and circumstances applicable to that contract. In these cases, the Company accounts for the additional products or services as a separate contract. In other cases where the pricing in the modification does not reflect the standalone selling price as adjusted for facts and circumstances applicable to that contract, the Company accounts for the additional products or services as part of the existing contract primarily on a prospective basis. Judgments and estimates. Accounting for contracts recognized over time involves the use of various techniques to estimate total contract revenue and costs. Due to uncertainties inherent in the estimation process, it is possible that estimates of costs to complete a performance obligation will be revised in the near-term. The Company reviews and updates its contract-related estimates regularly, and records adjustments as needed. For those performance obligations for which revenue is recognized using a cost-to-cost input method, changes in total estimated costs, and related progress towards complete satisfaction of the performance obligation, are recognized in the period in which the revisions to the estimates are made. Research and Development Research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Advertising Advertising costs are expensed as incurred and were $2.5 million, $1.4 million and $2.3 million, respectively, for 2021, 2020 and 2019. Stock-Based Compensation Expense Stock-based compensation consists of expense for stock options, RSAs and RSUs granted to employees and nonemployees based on the stock award’s grant date fair value. The Company uses the fair market value of its common stock to estimate the fair value of its RSAs and RSUs and uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to estimate the fair value of its stock options and purchase rights issued under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”). For market-based performance RSUs (“PRSU”s), the Company uses the Monte Carlo simulation model (a binomial lattice-based valuation model) to determine the fair value. Stock-based compensation expense for stock options and service-condition awards that are expected to vest is recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. For performance-based awards, expense is recognized when it is probable the performance goal will be achieved, however if the likelihood becomes improbable, that expense is reversed. The Company recognizes forfeitures as they occur. As a result of the Business Combination, on October 30, 2020 and May 18, 2021, the Board waived the liquidity event vesting condition applicable to outstanding shares of pre-combination Velodyne's RSUs and RSAs, respectively. As such, the Company's outstanding RSUs and RSAs vested to the extent the applicable service condition was satisfied as of such date. The Company accounted for the modification as an exchange of the original award, that was not expected to vest, for a new award.The fair value of the RSUs and RSAs were re-measured based on the fair market value of the underlying Velodyne common stock on the modification date. The compensation expenses resulting from the modification are recognized ratably over the remaining requisite service period or recognized immediately to the extent the service condition of the RSUs and RSAs has been satisfied as of the modification date. Income Taxes Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rate is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. The Company recognizes the effect of income tax positions only if those positions are more likely than not of being sustained. Recognized income tax positions are measured at the largest amount that is greater than 50% likely of being realized. Changes in recognition or measurement are reflected in the period in which the change in judgment occurs. Leases The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception. The Company evaluates classification of leases at commencement and, as necessary, at modification. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, all leases are classified as operating leases except for certain immaterial equipment finance leases. Operating leases, consisting primarily office leases, are included in other assets, other current liabilities, and other long-term liabilities on the Company's consolidated balance sheets. ROU assets represent the Company's right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent its obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized on the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any lease payments made prior to lease commencement and excludes lease incentives. Variable lease payments not dependent on an index or a rate, are expensed as incurred and are not included within the ROU asset and lease liability calculation. Variable lease payments primarily include reimbursements of costs incurred by lessors for common area maintenance and utilities. The Company's lease terms are the noncancelable period, including any rent-free periods provided by the lessor, and include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that it will exercise that option. At lease inception, and in subsequent periods as necessary, the Company estimates the lease term based on its assessment of extension and termination options that are reasonably certain to be exercised. As the Company's leases do not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses an incremental borrowing rate based on information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The incremental borrowing rate is a hypothetical rate based on the Company's understanding of what its credit rating would be for a secured borrowing where the lease was executed. Lease costs are recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company does not recognize ROU assets and lease liabilities for short-term leases, which have a lease term of twelve months or less and do not include an option to purchase the underlying asset that the Company is reasonably certain to exercise. Commitments and Contingencies Liabilities for loss contingencies arising from claims, assessments, litigation, fines, and penalties and other sources are recorded when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss or the amount within a range of loss can be reasonably estimated. When no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, the Company accrues for the minimum amount within the range. Legal costs incurred in connection with loss contingencies are expensed as incurred. No significant liabilities for loss contingencies were accrued as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. Product Warranties The Company typically provides a one-year warranty on its products. Estimated future warranty costs are accrued and charged to cost of revenue in the period that the related revenue is recognized. These estimates are based on historical warranty experience and any known or expected changes in warranty exposure, such as trends of product reliability and costs of repairing and replacing defective products. The Company periodically assesses the adequacy of its recorded warranty liabilities and adjusts the amounts as necessary. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements In February 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016-02, Leases (“Topic 842”), which supersedes FASB Accounti

Business Combination and Relate

Business Combination and Related Transactions	12 Months Ended
Business Combination and Related Transactions	Dec. 31, 2021
Business Combination and Asset Acquisition [Abstract]
Business Combination and Related Transactions	Business Combination and Related Transactions On September 29, 2020, the Company consummated a business combination with the pre-combination Velodyne. Pursuant to ASC 805, for financial accounting and reporting purposes, the pre-combination Velodyne was deemed the accounting acquirer and the Company was treated as the accounting acquiree, and the Business Combination was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization. Accordingly, the Business Combination was treated as the equivalent of the pre-combination Velodyne issuing stock for the net assets of Graf, accompanied by a recapitalization. Under this method of accounting, the consolidated financial statements of the Company are the historical financial statements of the pre-combination Velodyne. The net assets of Graf were stated at historical costs, with no goodwill or other intangible assets recorded, and are consolidated with the pre-combination Velodyne's financial statements on the Closing date. The shares and net loss per share for periods prior to the Business Combination have been retroactively restated as shares reflecting the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement. In connection with the Business Combination, Graf entered into subscription agreements with certain investors (the “PIPE Investors”), whereby it issued 15,000,000 shares of common stock at $10.00 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $150.0 million (the “Private Placement”), which closed simultaneously with the consummation of the Business Combination. Upon the closing of the Business Combination, the Private Placement shares were automatically converted into shares of the Company's common stock on a one-for-one basis. The aggregate consideration for the Business Combination and proceeds from the Private Placement was approximately $1.8 billion, consisting of (i) $222.1 million in cash at the closing of the Business Combination, net of transaction expenses, and (ii) 150,277,532 shares of common stock valued at $10.25 per share, totaling approximately $1.5 billion. The common stock consideration consists of up to (1) 143,575,763 shares of Company common stock, including shares issuable in respect of vested equity awards of the pre-combination Velodyne, plus (2) 2,000,000 shares of Company common stock earned due to the satisfaction of the earnout condition on July 30, 2020, including 187,861 earnout RSUs, which are subject to a six-month service condition, plus (3) 4,702,304 shares of Company common stock that were issued to Velodyne equity holders that did not opt to have their respective shares repurchased by the pre-combination Velodyne for cash in a pre-closing tender offer conducted by the pre-combination Velodyne. The Company used approximately $1.8 million of the proceeds to repurchase and retire 175,744 shares of Company common stock from certain stockholders in the pre-closing tender offer. In connection with the Business Combination, the Company incurred direct and incremental costs of approximately $29.1 million related to the equity issuance, consisting primarily of investment banking, legal, accounting and other On July 3, 2019, the Company acquired technology, workforce and certain assets of Mapper.ai, Inc. (“Mapper”), an on-demand map solution company, for a total of $2.5 million in cash. The acquisition was accounted for using the purchase method of accounting for business combinations. The total purchase price is allocated to acquired assets based on their estimated fair value at the acquisition date as follows (in thousands): Assets Acquired: Amount Developed technology $ 1,140 Property and equipment 144 Goodwill 1,189 Total purchase price $ 2,473 The excess of the purchase price over the tangible and intangible assets acquired has been recorded as goodwill. The goodwill is attributable to the workforce of the acquired business and expected synergies with the Company’s existing operations and is amortizable for income tax purposes. Management integrates the Mapper acquisition into its existing business structure, which is comprised of a single reporting unit. Developed technology is amortized on a straight-line basis over its estimated useful life of 3 years. Acquisition- related costs of $0.2 million were expensed in the period incurred within general and administrative expense in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations.

Revenue

Revenue	12 Months Ended
Revenue	Dec. 31, 2021
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Revenue	Revenue Disaggregation of Revenues The Company disaggregates its revenue from contracts with customers by geographic region based on the shipping location of the customer, type of good or service and timing of transfer of goods or services to customers (point-in-time or over time), as it believes it best depicts how the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of its revenue and cash flows are affected by economic factors. Total revenue based on the disaggregation criteria described above is as follows (dollar in thousands, percentage may not foot due to rounding difference): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 % of Revenue % of Revenue % of Revenue Revenue Revenue Revenue Revenue by geography: North America $ 23,313 38 % $ 41,228 43 % $ 49,634 49 % Asia Pacific 25,977 42 % 39,310 41 % 28,791 28 % Europe, Middle East and Africa 12,634 20 % 14,824 16 % 22,973 23 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 % Revenue by products and services: Products $ 48,002 78 % $ 68,355 72 % $ 81,424 80 % License and services 13,922 22 % 27,007 28 % 19,974 20 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 % Revenue by timing of recognition: Goods transferred at a point in time $ 56,569 91 % $ 92,550 97 % $ 92,890 92 % Goods and services transferred over time 5,355 9 % 2,812 3 % 8,508 8 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 % In June 2020, the Company entered into a patent cross-license agreement related to its litigation settlement with a customer in Asia Pacific. Under the terms of the arrangement, the customer agreed to make a one-time license payment upon settlement, will make annual fixed royalty payments through 2023, and thereafter, will make product sales royalty payments through February 2030. In September 2020, Velodyne entered into another patent cross-license agreement related to its litigation with a different customer in Asia Pacific. The Company recorded license revenue of $11.3 million and $19.7 million, respectively, related to these patent cross-license agreements for 2021 and 2020. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had $3.8 million and $3.4 million, respectively, of current deferred revenue, and $11.9 million and $13.7 million, respectively, of long-term deferred revenue associated with the rights granted as part of these patent cross-license agreements to receive future patents as they represent stand ready obligations. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company also had $16.3 million and $11.3 million, respectively, of contract assets related to these patent cross-license agreements. Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities Contract assets primarily relates to unbilled accounts receivable. Unbilled amounts arise when the timing of billing differs from the timing of revenue recognized, such as when revenue recognized on the guaranteed minimums at the inception of the contract when there is not yet a right to invoice in accordance with contract terms. Unbilled amounts are recorded as a contract asset when the revenue associated with the contract is recognized prior to billing and reclassified to accounts receivable when billed in accordance with the terms of the contract. Contract liabilities consist of deferred revenue, customer advanced payments and customer deposits. Deferred revenue includes billings in excess of revenue recognized related to product sales, licenses, extended warranty and other services revenue, and is recognized as revenue when the Company performs under the contract. The long-term portion of deferred revenue, mostly related to obligations under license arrangements and extended warranty, is classified as non-current contract liabilities and is included in other long-term liabilities in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. Customer advanced payments represent required customer payments in advance of product shipments according to customer’s payment term. Customer advance payments are recognized as revenue when control of the performance obligation is transferred to the customer. Customer deposits represent consideration received from a customer which can be applied to future product or service purchases, or refunded. Contract assets and contract liabilities consisted of the following as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Contract assets, current Unbilled accounts receivable $ 3,313 $ 2,813 Contract assets, long-term Unbilled accounts receivable 12,962 8,440 Total contract assets $ 16,275 $ 11,253 Contract liabilities, current Deferred revenue, current $ 6,209 $ 7,143 Customer advance payment 139 180 Total 6,348 7,323 Contract liabilities, long-term Deferred revenue, long-term 12,740 14,732 Total contract liabilities $ 19,088 $ 22,055 The following table shows the significant changes in contract assets and contract liabilities balances (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Contract assets: Beginning balance $ 11,253 $ — $ — Transferred to receivables from contract assets recognized at the beginning of the period (2,813) — — Increase due to unbilled and recognized as revenue in excess of billings during the period, net of amounts transferred to receivables 7,835 11,253 — Ending balance $ 16,275 $ 11,253 $ — Contract liabilities: Beginning balance $ 22,055 $ 19,164 $ 20,911 Revenue recognized that was included in the contract liabilities beginning balance (7,298) (12,182) (3,149) Increase due to cash received and not recognized as revenue and billings in excess of revenue recognized during the period 4,331 21,156 1,402 Customer deposits reclassified to refund liabilities — (6,083) — Ending balance $ 19,088 $ 22,055 $ 19,164

Fair Value Measurement

Fair Value Measurement	12 Months Ended
Fair Value Measurement	Dec. 31, 2021
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Fair Value Measurement	Fair Value MeasurementThe Company categorizes assets and liabilities recorded at fair value on the consolidated balance sheet based on the level of judgment associated with inputs used to measure their fair value. For assets and liabilities measured at fair value, fair value is the price that would be received from selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. When determining fair value, the Company considers the principal or most advantageous market in which the Company would transact, and the Company considers assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability. The three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value are: • Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2 — Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, such as quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets or quoted prices in less active market. All significant inputs used in the valuations are observable or can be directly or indirectly through market corroboration, for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities. • Level 3 — Unobservable inputs are based on assumptions used to measure assets and liabilities at fair value. The inputs require significant management judgment or estimation. The Company monitors and review the inputs to ensure the fair value measurements are reasonable and consistent with market experience in similar asset classes. The following table summarize the Company’s assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis, by level, within the fair value hierarchy (in thousands): December 31, 2021 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Cash equivalents: Money market fund $ 391 $ — $ — $ 391 Total cash equivalents 391 — — 391 Short-term investments: Money market fund 7 — — 7 Commercial paper — 130,983 — 130,983 Corporate debt securities — 139,367 — 139,367 Total short-term investments 7 270,350 — 270,357 Total assets measured at fair value $ 398 $ 270,350 $ — $ 270,748 December 31, 2020 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Cash equivalents: Money market fund $ 74,107 $ — $ — $ 74,107 Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities 19,999 — — 19,999 Corporate debt securities — 2,003 — 2,003 Commercial paper — 33,295 — 33,295 Total cash equivalents 94,106 35,298 — 129,404 Short-term investments: Commercial paper — 122,265 — 122,265 Corporate debt securities — 23,371 — 23,371 Total short-term investments — 145,636 — 145,636 Total assets measured at fair value $ 94,106 $ 180,934 $ — $ 275,040

Balance Sheet Components

Balance Sheet Components	12 Months Ended
Balance Sheet Components	Dec. 31, 2021
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Balance Sheet Components	Balance Sheet ComponentsAccounts Receivables, Net Accounts receivables, net consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Accounts receivable $ 12,088 $ 14,855 Allowance for doubtful accounts (3,207) (876) Accounts receivable, net $ 8,881 $ 13,979 Inventories, Net Inventories, net of reserve, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Raw materials $ 6,585 $ 6,876 Work-in-process 1,883 4,347 Finished goods 831 6,909 Total inventories $ 9,299 $ 18,132 The raw materials inventory included consigned inventory of $1.5 million as of December 31, 2021. Prepaid and Other Current Assets Prepaid and other current assets consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Prepaid expenses and deposits $ 7,883 $ 5,698 Due from contract manufacturers and vendors 1,302 2,944 Prepaid taxes 1,223 1,612 Contract assets 3,313 2,813 Receivable from warrant exercises — 9,074 Other 1,101 178 Total prepaid and other current assets $ 14,822 $ 22,319 Property, Plant and Equipment, Net Property, plant and equipment, at cost, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Machinery and equipment $ 36,264 $ 32,688 Leasehold improvements 6,752 5,905 Furniture and fixtures 1,497 1,479 Vehicles 359 360 Software 1,337 1,357 Assets under construction 1,900 641 48,109 42,430 Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization (33,399) (25,625) Property, plant and equipment, net $ 14,710 $ 16,805 Finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment) $ 888 $ 888 Less: accumulated depreciation (559) (381) Finance lease equipment, net $ 329 $ 507 The aggregate depreciation and amortization related to property, plant and equipment was as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Depreciation and amortization on property, plant and equipment $ 8,052 $ 8,009 $ 7,805 Depreciation on finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment) 178 178 122 Intangible Assets, Net Intangible assets, net, consist of the following (in thousands): Gross Carrying Amount Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value As of December 31, 2021: Developed technology $ 1,696 $ 972 $ 724 As of December 31, 2020: Developed technology $ 1,200 $ 573 $ 627 Amortization of intangible assets is as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Amortization of intangible assets $ 399 $ 385 $ 188 Other Assets Other assets, non-current, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Operating lease ROU assets $ 16,891 $ — Notes receivable 750 — Deposits and other 772 937 Total other assets $ 18,413 $ 937 In May 2021, the Company entered into a convertible note receivable agreement (the “Note”) with a borrower wherein Velodyne agreed to lend $750,000 at an interest rate of 0% per annum as a nonrecourse investment. The Note is convertible into equity at the election of the borrower or the Company upon occurrence of certain new financing or corporate transactions. The maturity date of the Note is May 11, 2024. Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities Accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Accrued payroll expenses $ 13,550 $ 11,877 Accrued manufacturing costs 3,925 8,003 Accrued transaction costs 5,000 25,057 Accrued professional and consulting fees 3,411 965 Accrued warranty costs 1,934 2,204 Accrued taxes 1,017 1,074 Lease liabilities 2,623 — Legal proceedings accrual 825 75 Other 3,366 1,094 Total accrued expense and other current liabilities $ 35,651 $ 50,349 Long-Term Liabilities Long-term liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 PPP loan $ — $ 10,000 Contract liabilities, long-term 12,740 14,732 Lease liabilities, long-term 15,210 — Other 661 1,195 Total long-term liabilities $ 28,611 $ 25,927

Leases

Leases	12 Months Ended
Leases	Dec. 31, 2021
Leases [Abstract]
Leases	Leases The Company leases real estate, equipment and automobiles in the U.S. and internationally. The Company leases office facilities under non-cancelable operating leases that expire on various dates through December 2027, including office and manufacturing space in San Jose, California used as its corporate headquarters. The leases do not contain any material residual value guarantees or restrictive covenants. Lease cost, which consisted primarily of operating lease cost, was $4.3 million for 2021. Under ASC 840, the previous lease standard, total rent expense under operating leases was $4.4 million and $4.3 million, respectively, for 2020 and 2019. Other information related to leases were as follows (in thousands, except years and percentages): Year Ended December 31, 2021 Supplemental cash flow information: Cash paid for operating leases included in operating cash flows $ 4,263 ROU assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities $ 498 December 31, 2021 Supplemental balance sheet information: Other assets $ 16,891 Total operating ROU assets $ 16,891 Other current liabilities $ 2,623 Other long-term liabilities 15,210 Total lease liabilities $ 17,833 Weighted average remaining lease term (years) 5.91 Weighted average discount rate 6.37 % As of December 31, 2021, maturities of lease liabilities were as follows, which excludes $1.2 million of legally binding minimum lease payments for leases that have been signed but not yet commenced: Years Ending December 31, Finance Leases Operating Leases 2022 $ 14 $ 3,585 2023 — 3,398 2024 — 3,459 2025 — 3,563 2026 — 3,670 Thereafter — 3,780 Total lease payments 14 $ 21,455 Less amount representing interest — (3,622) Present value of lease liabilities $ 14 $ 17,833
Leases	Leases The Company leases real estate, equipment and automobiles in the U.S. and internationally. The Company leases office facilities under non-cancelable operating leases that expire on various dates through December 2027, including office and manufacturing space in San Jose, California used as its corporate headquarters. The leases do not contain any material residual value guarantees or restrictive covenants. Lease cost, which consisted primarily of operating lease cost, was $4.3 million for 2021. Under ASC 840, the previous lease standard, total rent expense under operating leases was $4.4 million and $4.3 million, respectively, for 2020 and 2019. Other information related to leases were as follows (in thousands, except years and percentages): Year Ended December 31, 2021 Supplemental cash flow information: Cash paid for operating leases included in operating cash flows $ 4,263 ROU assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities $ 498 December 31, 2021 Supplemental balance sheet information: Other assets $ 16,891 Total operating ROU assets $ 16,891 Other current liabilities $ 2,623 Other long-term liabilities 15,210 Total lease liabilities $ 17,833 Weighted average remaining lease term (years) 5.91 Weighted average discount rate 6.37 % As of December 31, 2021, maturities of lease liabilities were as follows, which excludes $1.2 million of legally binding minimum lease payments for leases that have been signed but not yet commenced: Years Ending December 31, Finance Leases Operating Leases 2022 $ 14 $ 3,585 2023 — 3,398 2024 — 3,459 2025 — 3,563 2026 — 3,670 Thereafter — 3,780 Total lease payments 14 $ 21,455 Less amount representing interest — (3,622) Present value of lease liabilities $ 14 $ 17,833

Mapper Acquisition

Mapper Acquisition	12 Months Ended
Mapper Acquisition	Dec. 31, 2021
Business Combination and Asset Acquisition [Abstract]
Mapper Acquisition	Business Combination and Related Transactions On September 29, 2020, the Company consummated a business combination with the pre-combination Velodyne. Pursuant to ASC 805, for financial accounting and reporting purposes, the pre-combination Velodyne was deemed the accounting acquirer and the Company was treated as the accounting acquiree, and the Business Combination was accounted for as a reverse recapitalization. Accordingly, the Business Combination was treated as the equivalent of the pre-combination Velodyne issuing stock for the net assets of Graf, accompanied by a recapitalization. Under this method of accounting, the consolidated financial statements of the Company are the historical financial statements of the pre-combination Velodyne. The net assets of Graf were stated at historical costs, with no goodwill or other intangible assets recorded, and are consolidated with the pre-combination Velodyne's financial statements on the Closing date. The shares and net loss per share for periods prior to the Business Combination have been retroactively restated as shares reflecting the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement. In connection with the Business Combination, Graf entered into subscription agreements with certain investors (the “PIPE Investors”), whereby it issued 15,000,000 shares of common stock at $10.00 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $150.0 million (the “Private Placement”), which closed simultaneously with the consummation of the Business Combination. Upon the closing of the Business Combination, the Private Placement shares were automatically converted into shares of the Company's common stock on a one-for-one basis. The aggregate consideration for the Business Combination and proceeds from the Private Placement was approximately $1.8 billion, consisting of (i) $222.1 million in cash at the closing of the Business Combination, net of transaction expenses, and (ii) 150,277,532 shares of common stock valued at $10.25 per share, totaling approximately $1.5 billion. The common stock consideration consists of up to (1) 143,575,763 shares of Company common stock, including shares issuable in respect of vested equity awards of the pre-combination Velodyne, plus (2) 2,000,000 shares of Company common stock earned due to the satisfaction of the earnout condition on July 30, 2020, including 187,861 earnout RSUs, which are subject to a six-month service condition, plus (3) 4,702,304 shares of Company common stock that were issued to Velodyne equity holders that did not opt to have their respective shares repurchased by the pre-combination Velodyne for cash in a pre-closing tender offer conducted by the pre-combination Velodyne. The Company used approximately $1.8 million of the proceeds to repurchase and retire 175,744 shares of Company common stock from certain stockholders in the pre-closing tender offer. In connection with the Business Combination, the Company incurred direct and incremental costs of approximately $29.1 million related to the equity issuance, consisting primarily of investment banking, legal, accounting and other On July 3, 2019, the Company acquired technology, workforce and certain assets of Mapper.ai, Inc. (“Mapper”), an on-demand map solution company, for a total of $2.5 million in cash. The acquisition was accounted for using the purchase method of accounting for business combinations. The total purchase price is allocated to acquired assets based on their estimated fair value at the acquisition date as follows (in thousands): Assets Acquired: Amount Developed technology $ 1,140 Property and equipment 144 Goodwill 1,189 Total purchase price $ 2,473 The excess of the purchase price over the tangible and intangible assets acquired has been recorded as goodwill. The goodwill is attributable to the workforce of the acquired business and expected synergies with the Company’s existing operations and is amortizable for income tax purposes. Management integrates the Mapper acquisition into its existing business structure, which is comprised of a single reporting unit. Developed technology is amortized on a straight-line basis over its estimated useful life of 3 years. Acquisition- related costs of $0.2 million were expensed in the period incurred within general and administrative expense in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	12 Months Ended
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Dec. 31, 2021
Equity [Abstract]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive loss was comprised of the following as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Foreign currency translation loss $ (184) $ (170) Unrealized loss on investments (228) (60) Total accumulated other comprehensive loss $ (412) $ (230) During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, there were no significant amounts related to foreign currency translation loss or realized gains or loss on investments reclassified to net loss from accumulated other comprehensive loss. Common Stock On September 29, 2020, the Company consummated a business combination with the pre-combination Velodyne. On September 30, 2020, Velodyne Lidar’s common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “VLDR” and “VLDRW,” respectively. In connection with the Business Combination, outstanding common stock and preferred stock of the pre-combination Velodyne were converted into common stock of the Company. As discussed in Note 2, Business Combination, the Company has retroactively adjusted the pre-combination common and preferred shares issued and outstanding prior to September 29, 2020 to give effect to the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement to determine the number of shares of common stock into which they were converted. The Company is authorized to issue up to 2,250,000,000 shares of common stock, each with a par value of $0.0001 per share. The following summarizes the Company’s common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020: December 31, 2021 2020 Converted pre-combination Velodyne common stock outstanding 82,024,874 101,849,247 Converted pre-combination Velodyne preferred stock outstanding 24,772,759 24,772,759 Graf Founder shares 157,800 2,575,000 Other stockholders 90,391,242 46,715,188 Total common stock issued and outstanding 197,346,675 175,912,194 Preferred Stock The Company is authorized to issue up to 25,000,000 shares of preferred stock, each with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2021, no shares of preferred stock were issued and outstanding. Warrants Upon the closing of the Business Combination, there were 24,876,512 outstanding warrants to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock that were issued by Graf prior to the Business Combination. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase three-quarters of one share of the Company’s common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustments. The warrants are exercisable at any time commencing 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination and expire five years after the completion of the Business Combination. The Company may redeem the outstanding warrants in whole and not in part at a price of $0.01 per warrant at any time after they become exercisable, provided that the last sale price of the Company’s common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share, subject to adjustments, for any 20-trading days within a 30-trading day period ending three In connection with the Business Combination, on October 19, 2020, the Company registered the issuance of an aggregate of up to 18,657,384 shares of its common stock that are issuable upon the exercise of its warrants, including up to 375,000 shares of its common stock issuable upon exercise of its working capital warrants issued to Graf LLC. The exercise price of the warrants is $11.50 per share. The following summarizes the Company’s common stock issuance related to the warrant exercises: December 31, 2021 2020 Warrants outstanding upon Closing 24,876,512 24,876,512 Warrants exercised to date 18,902,642 9,598,538 Warrants outstanding 5,973,870 15,277,974 Aggregated common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 18,657,384 18,657,384 Common shares issued upon exercise of warrants 14,176,959 7,198,898 Remaining common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 4,480,425 11,458,486 On April 12, 2021, the Acting Director of the Division of Corporation Finance and Acting Chief Accountant of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued a statement regarding accounting and reporting considerations for warrants issued by SPACs. In light of the issues raised by the SEC, the Company re-evaluated its accounting position for the warrants and concluded that certain warrants should have been classified as a liability measured at fair value for the 30-day period from September 29, 2020 to October 29, 2020. Accounting for these warrants as a liability instead of equity would have reduced non-operating expense and net loss by $1.6 million for 2020. Additionally, a corresponding $1.6 million adjustment would have been made to reduce its accumulated deficit with an offsetting adjustment to additional paid in capital in its equity accounts at December 31, 2020. Accounting for these warrants as a liability instead of equity would not have any effect on Velodyne’s previously reported revenues, assets, liabilities, total equity, or cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2020. Velodyne has concluded the effects of accounting for the warrants as a liability instead of equity were immaterial to the previously issued financial statements. The Company has made an immaterial adjustment to its equity accounts for the effects of the accounting for the warrants in its consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity and balance sheet at December 31, 2021 by decreasing its accumulated deficit by $1.6 million with an offsetting decrease to its additional paid in capital. Dividends

Credit Facilities and Notes Pay

Credit Facilities and Notes Payable	12 Months Ended
Credit Facilities and Notes Payable	Dec. 31, 2021
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Credit Facilities and Notes Payable	Credit Facilities and Notes Payable The Company has a loan and security agreement with a financial institution that expires on February 24, 2023. The credit agreement, which was entered into in September 2020 and last amended in February 2022, provides a $25.0 million revolving line of credit, with a $5.0 million letter of credit sublimit. The agreement includes an option to increase the credit limit up to an additional $15.0 million with the bank’s approval. The advances under the credit facility bear interest at a rate per annum equal to the prime rate plus an applicable margin of 1.5% for prime rate advances, or the SOFR rate plus an applicable margin of 2.5% for SOFR advances. The unused revolving line facility fee is 0.15% per annum of the average unused portion of the credit facility. The revolving line of credit is secured by certain assets of the Company. As of December 31, 2021, the Company was compliant with all associated covenants in the agreement. No amounts were drawn against this credit facility during any of the periods presented. On April 8, 2020, the Company received loan proceeds of $10.0 million under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”). The principal and accrued interest are forgivable after 24 weeks as long as the borrower uses the loan proceeds for eligible purposes, including payroll, benefits, rent and utilities, and maintains its payroll levels and that approval is received from the relevant government entity. The unforgiven portion of the PPP loan is payable in two years at an interest rate of 1% per annum, with a deferral of interest payments for ten months after the expiration of the 24-week covered period. The Company filed for the forgiveness of the PPP loan and was approved for forgiveness of such loan and interest on June 30, 2021. The Company recorded a $10.1 million gain from the forgiveness of the PPP loan and related interest in other income for 2021.

Stockholders_ Equity

Stockholders’ Equity	12 Months Ended
Stockholders’ Equity	Dec. 31, 2021
Equity [Abstract]
Stockholders' Equity	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive loss was comprised of the following as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Foreign currency translation loss $ (184) $ (170) Unrealized loss on investments (228) (60) Total accumulated other comprehensive loss $ (412) $ (230) During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, there were no significant amounts related to foreign currency translation loss or realized gains or loss on investments reclassified to net loss from accumulated other comprehensive loss. Common Stock On September 29, 2020, the Company consummated a business combination with the pre-combination Velodyne. On September 30, 2020, Velodyne Lidar’s common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “VLDR” and “VLDRW,” respectively. In connection with the Business Combination, outstanding common stock and preferred stock of the pre-combination Velodyne were converted into common stock of the Company. As discussed in Note 2, Business Combination, the Company has retroactively adjusted the pre-combination common and preferred shares issued and outstanding prior to September 29, 2020 to give effect to the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement to determine the number of shares of common stock into which they were converted. The Company is authorized to issue up to 2,250,000,000 shares of common stock, each with a par value of $0.0001 per share. The following summarizes the Company’s common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020: December 31, 2021 2020 Converted pre-combination Velodyne common stock outstanding 82,024,874 101,849,247 Converted pre-combination Velodyne preferred stock outstanding 24,772,759 24,772,759 Graf Founder shares 157,800 2,575,000 Other stockholders 90,391,242 46,715,188 Total common stock issued and outstanding 197,346,675 175,912,194 Preferred Stock The Company is authorized to issue up to 25,000,000 shares of preferred stock, each with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2021, no shares of preferred stock were issued and outstanding. Warrants Upon the closing of the Business Combination, there were 24,876,512 outstanding warrants to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock that were issued by Graf prior to the Business Combination. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase three-quarters of one share of the Company’s common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustments. The warrants are exercisable at any time commencing 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination and expire five years after the completion of the Business Combination. The Company may redeem the outstanding warrants in whole and not in part at a price of $0.01 per warrant at any time after they become exercisable, provided that the last sale price of the Company’s common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share, subject to adjustments, for any 20-trading days within a 30-trading day period ending three In connection with the Business Combination, on October 19, 2020, the Company registered the issuance of an aggregate of up to 18,657,384 shares of its common stock that are issuable upon the exercise of its warrants, including up to 375,000 shares of its common stock issuable upon exercise of its working capital warrants issued to Graf LLC. The exercise price of the warrants is $11.50 per share. The following summarizes the Company’s common stock issuance related to the warrant exercises: December 31, 2021 2020 Warrants outstanding upon Closing 24,876,512 24,876,512 Warrants exercised to date 18,902,642 9,598,538 Warrants outstanding 5,973,870 15,277,974 Aggregated common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 18,657,384 18,657,384 Common shares issued upon exercise of warrants 14,176,959 7,198,898 Remaining common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 4,480,425 11,458,486 On April 12, 2021, the Acting Director of the Division of Corporation Finance and Acting Chief Accountant of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued a statement regarding accounting and reporting considerations for warrants issued by SPACs. In light of the issues raised by the SEC, the Company re-evaluated its accounting position for the warrants and concluded that certain warrants should have been classified as a liability measured at fair value for the 30-day period from September 29, 2020 to October 29, 2020. Accounting for these warrants as a liability instead of equity would have reduced non-operating expense and net loss by $1.6 million for 2020. Additionally, a corresponding $1.6 million adjustment would have been made to reduce its accumulated deficit with an offsetting adjustment to additional paid in capital in its equity accounts at December 31, 2020. Accounting for these warrants as a liability instead of equity would not have any effect on Velodyne’s previously reported revenues, assets, liabilities, total equity, or cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2020. Velodyne has concluded the effects of accounting for the warrants as a liability instead of equity were immaterial to the previously issued financial statements. The Company has made an immaterial adjustment to its equity accounts for the effects of the accounting for the warrants in its consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity and balance sheet at December 31, 2021 by decreasing its accumulated deficit by $1.6 million with an offsetting decrease to its additional paid in capital. Dividends

Stock-Based Compensation

Stock-Based Compensation	12 Months Ended
Stock-Based Compensation	Dec. 31, 2021
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]
Stock-Based Compensation	Stock-Based Compensation 2020 Equity Incentive Plans 2020 Equity Incentive Plan In connection with the Business Combination, on September 29, 2020, the Company's stockholders approved the 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”), which provides for the grant of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock awards and units (“RSAs” and “RSUs”), and other stock or cash-based awards to the Company’s employees, directors and consultants. The Board approved cancelling and converting all outstanding equity-awards granted under the pre-combination Velodyne’s stock plans into equity-based awards under the 2020 Plan effective upon the consummation of the Business Combination, based on exchange ratios established in the Merger Agreement with the same general terms and conditions corresponding to the original awards. The shares under the pre-combination Velodyne’s stock plans have been retroactively restated as shares reflecting the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement. The Company had an initial authorized reserve of 27,733,888 shares of its common stock for issuance under the 2020 Plan. Beginning on January 1, 2021, an additional number of shares will be reserved annually on the first day of each fiscal year for a period of no more than ten years in an amount equal to the least of (a) 5% of the total number of common shares actually issued and outstanding on the last day of the preceding fiscal year, (b) 10,000,000 common shares, or (c) a number of common shares determined by the Board. This limit is subject to adjustment in the event of a stock split, stock dividend or other change in the Company’s capitalization. The number of shares reserved was 36,738,678 and the remaining shares available for issuance under the 2020 Equity Plan was 17,806,628 as of December 31, 2021. The Company uses primarily the sell-to-cover method as the tax withholding method for stock awards upon settlement, pursuant to which shares with a market value equivalent to the tax withholding obligation are sold on behalf of the holder of the awards to cover the tax withholding liability and the cash proceeds from such sales are remitted by the Company to taxing authorities. 2020 Employee Stock Purchase Plan On September 29, 2020, the Company's stockholders approved the 2020 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”). The Company had an initial authorized reserve of 3,492,097 shares of common stock for issuance under the ESPP. Beginning on January 1, 2021, an additional number of shares will be reserved annually on the first day of each fiscal year for a period of no more than 20 years in an amount equal to the least of (i) 1% of the outstanding shares of our common stock on such date, (ii) 2,500,000 shares of our common stock or (iii) a lesser amount determined by the Compensation Committee or the Board. As of December 31, 2021, 220,382 shares have been issued and 5,072,673 shares remained available for future issuance under the ESPP. The ESPP permits eligible employees to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock through payroll deductions at a price equal to 85% of the lower of the fair market value of the stock at the beginning or the end of the applicable purchase period, in an amount not to exceed 15% of their compensation, subject to individual purchase limits of 3,000 shares in any purchase period or $25,000 worth of stock, determined at the fair market value of the shares at the first day of an offering period, in any calendar year. Each offering period has a duration of twelve months beginning on either June 1 or December 1 and consists of two consecutive six-month purchase periods. The ESPP contains a reset provision whereby if the price of the Company’s common stock on the first day of a new offering period is less than the price on the first day of any preceding offering period, all participants in a preceding offering period with a higher first day price will be automatically withdrawn from such offering periods and re-enrolled in the new offering period. The reset feature, when triggered, will be accounted for as a modification to the original offering period, resulting in incremental expense to be recognized over the new offering period. 2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan In March 2021, the Board adopted the 2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan (the “2020 Phantom Stock Plan”), which provides for the granting of up to 7,635,000 phantom stock units to certain employees that settle, or are expected to settle, with cash payments upon vesting. Like equity-settled awards, phantom stock units are awarded with vesting conditions and are subject to certain forfeiture provisions prior to vesting. Phantom stock unit activity for the year ended December 31, 2021 was not significant. Stock Incentive Awards As of December 31, 2021, the Company has equity incentive awards outstanding, which include stock options, RSUs, RSAs and phantom stock units under its stock incentive plans. Stock options expire in 10 years from the date of grant and typically vest 25 percent upon the one-year anniversary date from the initial vesting date, with the remainder vesting quarterly over the following three years. The RSUs and RSAs typically vest 25 percent upon the one-year anniversary date from initial vesting date, with the remainder vesting quarterly over the following three years. Certain RSUs also contain performance conditions related to the Company’s product development and business performance for the performance periods specified in the RSU agreements. In May 2020, the Company granted market-based performance RSUs (“PRSUs”) that contain service, liquidity event condition and market conditions to vest in the underlying common stock. The PRSUs vest upon the three-year anniversary date from initial vesting date and the number of shares that vests is ultimately dependent on the value of the Company’s stock at the vesting date. The RSUs and RSAs issued prior to September 29, 2020 are also subject to a liquidity event vesting condition, which is (i) an initial public offering, or (ii) a Company sale event, both of which must be satisfied on or before the 7-year anniversary of the date of the grant in order for the RSUs to be vested and settled for shares of common stock. As a result of the Business Combination, on October 30, 2020 and May 18, 2021, the Board waived the liquidity event vesting condition applicable to approximately 11.8 million and 4.2 million outstanding shares of pre-combination Velodyne's RSUs and RSAs, respectively, held by approximately 330 current and former employees and directors. A summary of stock option activities during 2021 is as follows: Shares Weighted Average Exercise Price Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life Aggregate Intrinsic Value (Years) (In thousands) Option: Options outstanding as of December 31, 2020 597,354 $5.86 Exercised (440,673) $5.74 Expired (146,890) $6.15 Options outstanding as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ — Options exercisable as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ — Options vested and expected to vest as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ — A summary of RSA and RSU activities during 2021 is as follows: Shares Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value per Share RSA: RSAs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 4,183,624 $10.78 Granted 211,298 $6.63 Released (4,183,624) $10.78 RSAs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 211,298 $6.63 RSU: RSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 11,983,636 $12.43 Granted 4,253,681 $9.86 Released (9,403,574) $12.44 Forfeited (1,706,847) $11.71 RSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 5,126,896 $10.51 PRSU: PRSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 1,101,683 $6.72 Granted 9,141 $1.97 Forfeited (780,319) $6.66 PRSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 330,505 $6.72 Additional information related to stock options, RSA and RSU is summarized below (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Intrinsic value of options exercised $ 230 $ — $ — Fair value of RSA released 45,099 — — Fair value of RSUs released 104,801 — — Stock-Based Compensation Expense Stock-based compensation consists of expense related primarily to our RSUs and RSAs and, to a lesser extent, stock options, ESPP purchase rights and market-based PRSUs. The Company measures stock-based compensation expenses based on grant date fair value of the stock awards. The Company recognizes stock-based compensation expenses for stock options and service-condition awards that are expected to vest on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. For performance-based awards, expense is recognized when it is probable the performance goal will be achieved. The Company recognizes forfeitures as they occur. The Company determines fair market value of the RSUs and RSAs using Velodyne’s closing stock price on grant date. Prior to the business combination, no compensation expense had been recognized for the RSUs and RSAs granted under the pre-combination Velodyne's stock incentive plans because the liquidity event vesting condition was not probable of being met. When the Board waived the liquidity event vesting condition, the Company's outstanding RSUs and RSAs vested to the extent the applicable service condition was satisfied as of such dates. The fair value of the RSUs were re-measured to $12.23 and $10.78 per share, respectively, which was based on the fair market value of Velodyne stock on the modification date. The vesting of the RSUs and RSAs resulted in approximately $77.5 million and $45.1 million, respectively, of incremental stock-based compensation expense in the fourth quarter of 2020 and second quarter of 2021. During the third quarter of 2021 , the Company accelerated the vesting of 275,419 options, 442,209 RSUs and 330,504 PRSUs to fully vested and incurred approximately $10.8 million of stock-based compensation expense upon the vesting of these stock-based awards. The Company uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine the fair value of its stock options and ESPP purchase rights, and uses the Monte Carlo simulation model to determine the fair value of its market-based PRSUs. The Monte Carlo simulation model uses multiple input variables to determine the probability of satisfying the market condition requirements. The fair value of the PRSUs is not subject to change based on future market conditions. The determination of the fair value for stock options, ESPP purchase rights and PRSUs requires judgment, including estimating the fair market value of common stock, stock-price volatility, expected term, expected dividends and risk-free interest rates. The expected volatility rates for stock options and market-condition PRSUs are estimated based on historical volatilities of the Company’s peers’ common stock over a period of time that approximates the expected term of the awards. For ESPP, the computation of the expected volatility assumption is based on a weighting of historical and implied volatilities. Due to lack of historical data on employees’ option exercises, the Company estimates the expected term of the options using the simplified method, which calculates the expected term equal to the midpoint between the vesting period and the maximum contractual term. The risk-free interest rate for the period within the expected term is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve for the comparable term in effect at the time of grant. The expected dividend yield used in the calculation is zero because the Company has not historically paid and currently does not expect to pay dividends in the foreseeable future. The following table sets forth the weighted average grant date fair value for options and ESPP purchase rights and the assumptions used as inputs for the Black-Scholes option pricing model for the applicable periods: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 Stock options: Weighted average grant date fair value of options $2.10 Expected term, in years 5.55 Expected volatility 39.82% Risk-free interest rate 0.371% Expected dividend yield —% ESPP: Weighted average grant date fair value of ESPP purchase rights $2.87 Expected term, in years 0.73 Expected volatility 90.17% Risk-free interest rate 0.14% Expected dividend yield —% The following table sets forth the weighted average modification date fair value for market-based PRSUs and the assumptions used as inputs for the Monte Carlo simulation model for the applicable period: Year Ended Weighted average modification date fair value of PRSUs $6.72 Expected term, in years 2.17 Expected volatility 49.00% Risk-free interest rate 0.15% Expected dividend yield —% The following table presents stock-based compensation expense included in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Cost of revenue $ 2,050 $ 7,417 $ — Research and development 12,787 37,030 97 Sales and marketing 46,259 14,773 — General and administrative 26,007 32,280 38 Total stock-based compensation expense $ 87,103 $ 91,500 $ 135 As of December 31, 2021, unrecognized compensation cost related to RSUs, RSAs and ESPP was $46.5 million, $1.4 million and $1.2 million, respectively, which was expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 2.81 years, 3.83 years and 0.60 years, respectively. Phantom stock units are recorded as a liability at their current market value and are included in other current liabilities. These grants remain subject to vesting 25% upon the one-year anniversary date from initial vesting date, with the remainder vesting quarterly over the following three years. Based on the trading price of the Company's common stock, the amount of liability recorded related to phantom stock units was not significant at December 31, 2021.

Net Loss Per Share

Net Loss Per Share	12 Months Ended
Net Loss Per Share	Dec. 31, 2021
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Net Loss Per Share	Net Loss Per Share Pursuant to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and as a result of the Business Combination and reverse recapitalization, the Company has retrospectively adjusted the weighted average shares outstanding prior to September 29, 2020 to give effect to the exchange ratio used to determine the number of shares of common stock into which the pre-combination Velodyne common and preferred stock converted. Basic net income (loss) per share is computed based on the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted net income (loss) per share is computed based on the weighted average number of common shares outstanding plus the effect of dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period using the treasury stock method. During the periods when there is a net loss, potentially dilutive common stock equivalents have been excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share as their effect is anti-dilutive. Warrants to purchase 24,876,512 shares of common stock at $11.50 per share were issued during Graf’s initial public offering. As of December 31, 2021, there were 18,902,642 warrants exercised and 14,176,959 shares of common stock issued under warrant exercises. The 5,973,870 outstanding warrants were excluded from the basic and diluted net loss per share as they were anti-dilutive given the Company had a net loss for all periods presented. The following common stock equivalents have also been excluded from the computation of diluted net loss per share for the periods presented because including them would have been antidilutive (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Stock options 10 597 157 RSAs 211 4,184 4,184 RSUs (non-vested) 4,881 6,320 9,540 Total 5,102 11,101 13,881

Retirement Plan

Retirement Plan	12 Months Ended
Retirement Plan	Dec. 31, 2021
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Retirement Plan	Retirement PlanThe Company has a 401(k) savings and profit-sharing plan (the “401(k) Plan”), which is intended to be a tax-qualified defined contribution plan that covers all eligible employees, as defined in the applicable plan documents. Under the 401(k) Plan, eligible employees may elect salary deferral contributions, not to exceed limitations established annually by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”). The Company matches 25% of employees’ eligible contributions up to a maximum amount determined by the Company. The Company’s matching contributions vest 25% per year over the employee’s first four-year period of service. The Company’s matching contributions were $0.9 million, $0.8 million and $0.9 million, respectively, for 2021, 2020 and 2019.

Restructuring

Restructuring	12 Months Ended
Restructuring	Dec. 31, 2021
Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]
Restructuring	Restructuring In March 2020, the Company initiated a restructuring plan to downsize the manufacturing function and related engineering and administrative functions in its California locations, which was completed in 2020. The purposes of this plan were to align resource requirements with the Company’s initiatives to lower the Company’s cost structure and to increase its production capacity by outsourcing a majority of its manufacturing activities. The Company’s restructuring expenses incurred primarily related to employee termination costs. The Company incurred restructuring costs of $1.0 million for 2020.

Income Taxes

Income Taxes	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes	Dec. 31, 2021
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes Loss before income taxes consisted of the followings (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Domestic $ (212,156) $ (154,290) $ (68,645) Foreign 565 342 736 Loss before income taxes $ (211,591) $ (153,948) $ (67,909) Provision for (benefit from) income taxes consisted of the following (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Current: Federal $ 584 $ (4,124) $ 958 State (70) (20) (130) Foreign 128 56 430 Total Current 642 (4,088) 1,258 Deferred: Federal 3 3 (1,942) State — 1 1 Total Deferred 3 4 (1,941) Provision for (benefit from) income taxes $ 645 $ (4,084) $ (683) The Company is subject to income taxes in the United States, China, Germany and India. The tax provision for the periods presented primarily relates to income taxes of non-U.S. operations as the U.S. operations were in a loss position and the Company maintains a full valuation allowance against its U.S. deferred tax assets. The provision for (benefit from) income taxes differ from the amounts computed by applying the U.S. federal income tax rate to income (loss) before income taxes for the following reasons: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 U.S. federal provision at statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 21.0 % State income taxes, net of federal benefit 0.3 1.5 1.3 Foreign income taxes at rates other than the U.S. rate — — (0.4) Tax credits 2.5 3.0 6.7 Withholding taxes (0.3) (1.7) (1.5) Permanent items 1.0 (1.4) (0.2) Uncertain tax benefits (0.5) (0.2) (0.2) 2019 CARES Act impact — 4.3 — Prior year return to provision adjustments 0.6 (1.7) (0.1) Change in valuation allowance (18.2) (22.0) (25.7) Stock-based compensation, net of tax deductions (6.6) — — Other (0.1) (0.1) 0.1 Effective tax rate (0.3) % 2.7 % 1.0 % The Company’s effective tax rates differ from the federal statutory rate primarily due to state taxes, tax credits, valuation allowance, tax impact related to the 2019 CARES Act, stock-based compensation and other permanent adjustments. Enacted on March 27, 2020, the CARES Act provides emergency assistance and health care response for businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The CARES Act, among other things, permits net operating loss carryovers and carrybacks to offset 100% of taxable income for taxable years beginning before 2021. Additionally, the CARES Act allows net operating losses incurred in 2018, 2019 and 2020 to be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years to generate a refund of previously paid income taxes. In May 2020, the Company received a $7.1 million tax refund related to the carryback of a portion of its 2019 net operating losses to 2017. The Company recorded a $6.7 million tax benefit related to the release of a valuation allowance associated with carrying back a portion of its 2019 net operating losses to 2017 that is allowed by the CARES Act in 2020. The relief provisions did not have additional material impact on the Company’s 2021 consolidated financial statements. The Company’s deferred income tax assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 were as follows (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Deferred tax assets: Net operating loss carryforward $ 82,350 $ 42,698 Tax credits 20,843 13,387 Deferred revenue 3,796 224 Accruals and reserves 3,791 3,449 Inventories 1,712 1,850 Stock-based compensation 1,330 16,179 Intangibles 1,951 94 Lease liabilities 3,879 — Other 8 23 Total deferred tax assets 119,660 77,904 Deferred tax liabilities: Depreciation and amortization (263) (1,203) ROU assets (3,665) — Prepaids (1,486) (1,149) Total deferred tax liabilities (5,414) (2,352) Net deferred tax assets before valuation allowance 114,246 75,552 Valuation allowance (114,256) (75,558) Net deferred tax liabilities $ (10) $ (6) Income taxes are accounted for using an asset-and-liability approach. Deferred income taxes reflect the net effects of temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for income tax purposes, and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards measured by applying currently enacted tax laws. If applicable, a valuation allowance is provided to reduce net deferred tax assets to an amount that is more likely than not to be realized. Further, the Company establishes liabilities or reduces assets for uncertain tax positions when it believes certain tax positions are not more likely than not of being sustained if challenged. Revaluation of tax positions considers factors such as changes in facts or circumstances, changes in or interpretations of tax law, effectively settled issues under audit or expiration of statute of limitation, and new audit activity. The Company assesses the realizability of deferred tax assets based on the available evidence, including a history of taxable income and estimates of future taxable income. In assessing the realizability of deferred tax assets, the Company considers whether it is more likely than not that all or some portion of deferred tax assets will not be realized. Due to the cumulative historical losses generated by the Company and the projected losses in the future, the Company believes it is not more likely than not that all of the deferred tax assets can be realized. Accordingly, the Company established and recorded a net valuation allowance on its deferred tax assets of $114.3 million and $75.6 million as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. Utilization of the net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards may be subject to a substantial annual limitation due to the “ownership change” limitations provided by Section 382 and 383 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and other similar state provisions. Any annual limitation may result in the expiration of net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards before utilization. Furthermore, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“Tax Reform Act”), although the treatment of tax losses generated in taxable years ending before December 31, 2017 has generally not changed, tax losses generated in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 may be utilized to offset no more than 80% of taxable income annually. This change may require us to pay federal income taxes in future years despite generating a loss for federal income tax purposes in the current and prior years. As of December 31, 2021, the Company had $367.3 million of U.S. federal and $107.2 million of state net operating loss carryforwards available to reduce future taxable income, which will be carried forward indefinitely for U.S. federal tax purposes and will expire beginning in 2028 through 2039 for state tax purposes. The Company also has federal and California research and development tax credit carryforwards of $16.0 million and $10.0 million, respectively. The federal research credit carryforwards will begin to expire in 2036 and California research credits can be carried forward indefinitely. The Company also has federal foreign tax credit carryforwards of $4.2 million that will expire beginning in 2029. The Company accrues for uncertain tax positions identified, which are not deemed more likely than not to be sustained if challenged, and recognizes interest and penalties accrued on any unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax expense. The Company accrued immaterial interest on uncertain tax benefits associated with unrecognized tax benefits, and had immaterial cumulative interest and penalties as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. The following table summarizes the aggregate changes in the total gross amount of unrecognized tax benefits (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Unrecognized tax benefits as of the beginning of the year $ 5,785 $ 4,188 $ 2,824 Increases related to prior year tax provisions 226 400 308 Increase related to current year tax provisions 4,226 1,240 1,282 Statute lapse — (43) (226) Unrecognized tax benefits as of the end of the year $ 10,237 $ 5,785 $ 4,188 The unrecognized tax benefits, if recognized, would impact the income tax provision by $0.4 million, $0.5 million, and $1.3 million as of December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The remaining unrecognized tax benefits would not impact the income tax provision as there would be an offset by the reversal of related deferred tax assets subject to a full valuation allowance. The Company’s major tax jurisdictions are the United States and California and the earliest year open for examination is the 2016 tax year. The Company’s 2017 and 2018 tax years are currently under IRS examination. The Company believes that an adequate provision has been made for any adjustments that may result from the tax examination. Although the timing of the resolution, settlement, and closure of the audit is not certain, the Company does not believe it is reasonably possible that the Company’s unrecognized tax benefits will materially change in the next 12 months.

Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	12 Months Ended
Commitments and Contingencies	Dec. 31, 2021
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies Purchase and Other Commitments The following table summarizes contractual obligations and commitments as of December 31, 2021 (in thousands): Years Ending December 31, Purchase Commitments Other Contractual Commitments 2022 $ 50,344 $ 409 2023 — 156 2024 — 26 Total $ 50,344 $ 591 Purchase commitments represent outstanding purchase orders or commitments for goods or services with contract manufacturers and vendors that range mostly from one month up to a year. The Company uses several contract manufacturers to manufacture components, subassemblies and products. The Company provides these contract manufacturers with demand information and they use this information to acquire components and build products. Contract manufacturer commitments consist of obligations for on-hand inventories and non-cancelable purchase orders with contract manufactures. If the Company cancels all or part of the orders, it may still be liable to the contract manufacturers for the cost of the materials and components purchased by the subcontractors to manufacture the Company’s products. The Company also obtains individual components for its products from a wide variety of individual suppliers. Other contractual commitments represent the Company’s other contractual obligations for goods or services associated with its ordinary course of business. Product Warranties The following table summarizes the activity related to product warranty liabilities and their balances as included in other accrued expenses (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Balance as of the beginning of the period $ 2,204 $ 4,322 $ 3,531 Warranty provision 2,599 4,316 6,531 Consumption (2,217) (2,700) (4,939) Changes in provision estimates (652) (3,734) (801) Balance as of the end of the period $ 1,934 $ 2,204 $ 4,322 Legal Proceedings From time to time, the Company is involved in actions, claims, suits and other proceedings in the ordinary course of business, including assertions by third parties relating to intellectual property infringement, breaches of contract or warranties or employment-related matters. The Company is defending all current litigation matters. Although there can be no assurances and the outcome of these matters is currently not determinable (except as specifically described below), the Company currently believes that none of these claims or proceedings are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position. Arbitration Proceeding Against David Hall On June 9, 2021, the Company initiated an arbitration proceeding against David Hall, alleging breach of contract and misappropriation of the Company’s confidential, proprietary, and trade secret information. To protect its intellectual property and in aid of the arbitration process, on July 2, 2021 the Company filed an application with the Santa Clara County Superior Court for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to prohibit Mr. Hall from any further copying, disclosure or use of the Company’s intellectual property and to require him to return all such property to the Company. On September 7, 2021, the arbitrator issued a preliminary injunction against Mr. Hall, ordering that: 1) Mr. Hall is enjoined from retrieving or accessing three devices to which he copied Velodyne materials and must transfer those devices to a discovery special master, who will review Mr. Hall’s retention and usage of Velodyne information and prepare reports on such retention and use; 2) Mr. Hall must provide an under-oath inventory of any and all of his personal electronic devices in his possession or control upon which Velodyne information currently resides and, upon Velodyne’s request, must provide Velodyne with access to those devices upon request to retrieve, destroy, or ensure the permanent deletion of Velodyne information from those devices; 3) Mr. Hall is enjoined from using anything he created or worked on for Velodyne during the time of his employment; and 4) In light of the preliminary injunctive relief granted under its breach of contract claim, Velodyne’s requests for relief under the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act and for a deposition were denied at this juncture, but the arbitrator expressly held that Velodyne could reinstate those demands following the special master’s report on Mr. Hall’s retention and usage of Velodyne’s materials. Mr. Hall subsequently provided an under-oath inventory pursuant to that order, which identified seventy-one personal devices that may contain Velodyne information. Because Mr. Hall did not consent to the special master conditionally appointed by the arbitrator, Velodyne and Mr. Hall are negotiating on protocol by which to preliminarily review and inspect those personal devices. On October 26, 2021, Mr. Hall filed a motion for a protective order seeking to require the Company to segregate and return his allegedly personal, private, privileged, and confidential information from his Company-issued laptop. On November 30, 2021, the judge denied Mr. Hall’s protective order, noting that Mr. Hall has no expectation of privacy as to the contents of his laptop and that he waived his right to assert privileged over the contents of the laptop. In the same ruling, the judge compelled Mr. Hall to respond to interrogatories issued by Velodyne . On December 16, 2021, the judge ruled that Velodyne sufficiently identified 2,740 allegedly-misappropriated trade secrets. On February 17, 2022, the judge imposed sanctions on Mr. Hall for discovery abuse, and ordered Mr. Hall to pay Velodyne $5,000 as sanctions. Discrimination Proceedings by Marta Hall On August 2, 2021, the Company received a Charge of Discrimination dated July 27, 2021 (“Charge”), indicating that former Chief Marketing Officer, Marta Hall, has filed a charge of employment discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, alleging sexual discrimination and retaliation. On February 15, 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a determination that it will not proceed with an investigation of Ms. Hall’s claim. On September 27, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) informed the Company that it dismissed a complaint brought by Ms. Hall alleging retaliation in violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“SOX”). OSHA found that Ms. Hall failed to show that she engaged in a protected activity under SOX. On October 21, 2021, Ms. Hall submitted an objection to the findings and requested a hearing before an administrative law judge. The Company intends to defend the actions vigorously. Hall Proceeding against Individuals On January 18, 2022, David Hall and Marta Hall filed a complaint against various current and former officers and directors of Velodyne and other individuals in the Superior Court of California, Alameda County, entitled Hall v. Vetter, No. 22-cv-005713. The complaint alleges conspiracy to defraud, breach of fiduciary duty, aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, and securities fraud. The complaint alleges David and Marta Hall have suffered damages and seeks, among other things, compensatory and punitive damages. The Company intends to defend the action vigorously. Quanergy Litigation In September 2016, Quanergy Systems, Inc. (“Quanergy”) filed a complaint against the Company and one of its customers in the Northern District of California (the District Court litigation), seeking a declaratory judgment of non-infringement of one of the Company’s patents, U.S. Patent No. 7,969,558 (the “‘558 patent”) and asserting state and federal trade secret misappropriation claims against the Company and its customer and breach of contract and constructive fraud claims against its customer. In November 2016, Quanergy filed an amended complaint, removing its trade secret misappropriation claims against the Company, dropping its customer from the suit and dropping the related claims of breach and constructive fraud. The amended complaint maintained only the declaratory judgment of non-infringement action against the Company. In December 2016, the Company filed an answer generally denying the allegations and relief requested in Quanergy’s amended complaint. The Company’s answer also included counterclaims against Quanergy asserting direct, indirect, and willful infringement of the ‘558 patent. In January 2017, Quanergy filed an answer generally denying the allegations in the Company’s patent infringement counterclaims and requesting relief. The court held a claim construction hearing on September 13, 2017 and issued a claim construction order on October 4, 2017, which adopted the majority of the Company’s proposed constructions. In June 2018, the district court entered an order granting a joint stipulation to stay the litigation. Quanergy filed two petitions for inter partes review with the U.S. Patent Office’s Patent Trials and Appeal Board (“PTAB”) in November 2017, challenging all claims of the ‘558 patent that the Company asserted. The Company filed its Patent Owner Preliminary Response to Quanergy’s petitions on March 7, 2018. The PTAB issued an institution decision on May 25, 2018, instituting review of all challenged claims. The Company subsequently filed its Patent Owner Response and a Contingent Motion to amend the claims. The PTAB held oral argument on February 27, 2019. On May 23, 2019, the PTAB issued a Final Written Decision upholding the validity of all the challenged claims, finding that Quanergy did not prove by a preponderance of the evidence that any of the challenged claims of the ‘558 patent were unpatentable, and denying the Company’s contingent motion as moot. In June 2019, Quanergy filed a request for rehearing. On July 21, 2020, Quanergy filed a Notice of Appeal, appealing the PTAB decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Quanergy’s opening appeal brief was filed on January 22, 2021. On February 4, 2022, the Federal Circuit of Appeals issued a ruling upholding the validity of the Company’s patents. As a result of that ruling, on February 18, 2022, the district court lifted the stay and ordered the parties to appear for a case management conference on April 11, 2022. Criterion ITC Litigation In July 2021, Criterion Technology, Inc. (“Criterion”) filed complaints against the Company and one of its suppliers in the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) and Northern District of California. The complaints allege claims of trade secret misappropriation, breach of contract, and unfair business practices under federal and California law. Criterion’s claims are directed to optical enclosures in Lidar products. The ITC investigation was instituted on August 4, 2021. On October 27, 2021, Criterion withdrew its complaint from the ITC and requested that the investigation be terminated in its entirety. On November 2, 2021, the ITC judge issued an initial order to terminate the ITC investigation and stay all deadlines in the case schedule pending the ITC Commissioner’s final determination closing the matter. On November 16 ,2021, the ITC terminated the investigation. On December 11, 2021, Criterion, filed a notice of dismissal for the complaint in the Northern District of California. Employment Matters On June 8, 2020, a former employee filed a class action lawsuit in the Santa Clara County Superior Court of the State of California. The complaint alleges that, among other things, the Company failed to pay minimum and overtime wages, final wages at termination, and other claims based on meal periods and rest breaks. The plaintiff is bringing this lawsuit on behalf of herself and other similarly situated plaintiffs who have not been identified and is seeking to certify the action as a class action. The plaintiff has now filed a First Amended Complaint that adds a claim pursuant to California’s Private Attorneys General Act. The First Amended Complaint does not specify the amount the plaintiff seeks to recover. Velodyne’s response to the First Amended Complaint was filed on November 16, 2020 and the parties are in the process of beginning discovery concerning class certification issues. On August 5, 2021, the parties reached a tentative settlement, subject to court approval, whereby the Company will pay $0.8 million. Securities Litigation Matters On March 3, 2021, a purported shareholder of Velodyne filed a complaint for a putative class action against Velodyne, Anand Gopalan and Andrew Hamer in the United States District Court, Northern District of California, entitled Moradpour v. Velodyne Lidar, Inc., et al., No. 3:21-cv-01486-SI. The complaint alleges purported violations of the federal securities laws and that, among other things, the defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material facts about the Company’s business, operations and prospects. The complaint alleges that purported class members have suffered losses. The complaint seeks, among other things, an award of compensatory damages on behalf of a putative class of persons who purchased or otherwise acquired the Company’s securities between November 9, 2020 and February 19, 2021. On March 12, 2021, a putative class action entitled Reese v. Velodyne Lidar, Inc., et al., No. 3:21-cv-01736-VC, was filed against the Company, Mr. Gopalan and Mr. Hamer in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, based on allegations similar to those in the earlier class action and seeking recovery on behalf of the same putative class. On March 19, 2021, another putative class action entitled Nick v. Velodyne Lidar, Inc., et al., No. 4:21-cv-01950-JST, was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, against the Company, Mr. Gopalan, Mr. Hamer, two current or former directors, and three other entities. The complaint alleges purported violations of the federal securities laws and that, among other things, the defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material facts about the Company’s business, operations, controls and prospects and seeks, among other things, an award of compensatory damages on behalf of a putative class of persons who purchased or otherwise acquired the Company’s securities between July 2, 2020 and March 17, 2021. The class actions have been consolidated, lead plaintiffs have been appointed and an amended consolidated complaint was filed on September 1, 2021. The Company filed a motion to dismiss the complaint on November 1, 2021. The plaintiffs filed a first amended complaint on February 11, 2022. The Company intends to file a motion to dismiss on March 4, 2022. The Company intends to defend the actions vigorously. On March 12, 2021, a putative shareholder derivative lawsuit entitled D’Arcy v. Gopalan, et al., No. 1:21-cv-00369-MN, was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware against current and former directors and/or officers Anand Gopalan, Andrew Hamer, David S. Hall, Marta Thoma Hall, Joseph B. Culkin, Michael E. Dee, James A. Graf, Barbara Samardzich, and Christopher A. Thomas, and names the Company as a nominal defendant. The complaint asserts claims for breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, abuse of control, gross mismanagement, and waste of corporate assets against all of the individual defendants, and asserts a contribution claim under the federal securities laws against Mr. Gopalan and Mr. Hamer. On March 16, 2021, a second shareholder derivative lawsuit entitled Kondner, et al. v. Culkin, et al., No. 1:21-cv-00391-MN, was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware against most of the same defendants named in the earlier derivative complaint, and asserts claims against the individual defendants for alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and waste of corporate assets. Both derivative actions are based on allegations similar to those in the class actions discussed above, and have now been consolidated. On January 3, 2022, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint. Contingency Assessment

Segment, Geographic and Custome

Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information	12 Months Ended
Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information	Dec. 31, 2021
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information	Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information The Company conducts its business in one operating segment that develops and produces Lidar sensors for use in industrial, 3D mapping, drones and auto applications. The Company’s Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) is the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”). The CODM allocates resources and makes operating decisions based on financial information presented on a consolidated basis, accompanied by disaggregated information about sales and gross margin by product group. The profitability of the Company’s product group is not a determining factor in allocating resources and the CODM does not evaluate profitability below the level of the consolidated company. The Company reports revenue by region and country based on the location where its customers accept delivery of its products and services. Revenue by region was as follows (dollar amount in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Revenue by region: North America $ 23,313 $ 41,228 $ 49,634 Asia Pacific 25,977 39,310 28,791 Europe, Middle East and Africa 12,634 14,824 22,973 Total $ 61,924 $ 95,362 $ 101,398 % of Revenue by region: North America 38 % 43 % 49 % Asia Pacific 42 % 41 % 28 % Europe, Middle East and Africa 20 % 16 % 23 % Total 100 % 100 % 100 % Revenue by countries and customers that accounted for more than 10% of revenue was as follows: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Countries over 10% of revenue: U.S. 35 % 34 % 46 % China 30 % 31 % 11 % Sweden 13 % * * Number of customers that accounted for over 10% of revenue: 2 2 2 * Less than 10%. The Company’s long-lived assets, consisting primarily of property, plant and equipment, were primarily located in the United States as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020.

Related Party Transactions

Related Party Transactions	12 Months Ended
Related Party Transactions	Dec. 31, 2021
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
Related Party Transactions	Related Party TransactionsCertain holders of the pre-combination Velodyne's convertible preferred stock (which converted into common stock of the Company upon the Business Combination) purchased products and services, directly or through a third party, from the Company. Revenue and accounts receivable for these holders were as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Revenue: Stockholder A $ 347 465 $ (3,514) Stockholder B (1) N/A 7,008 1,391 Stockholder C — 764 6,148 December 31, 2021 2020 Accounts receivable: Stockholder A $ 219 $ — Stockholder B (1) N/A $ 3,085 (1) Stockholder B sold all its shares of the Company’s common stock in the fourth quarter of 2020. In April 2019, the Company entered into a manufacturing agreement with one of its Series B Preferred Stockholders (“Stockholder D”), and the Company has one product that is currently being manufactured by Stockholder D. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had $0.2 million and $6.3 million, respectively, of payable and accrued purchases, and $15.7 million and $15.0 million, respectively, of outstanding purchase commitments for products with this stockholder. The Company procures equipment, materials and components for Stockholder D to build the product and had $0.1 million and $1.5 million, respectively, of receivables from this stockholder which was included in other current assets as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020. The Company also loaned to Stockholder D manufacturing equipment with a net book value of $0.5 million and $0.4 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, which was included in the Company’s balance sheet within property, plant and equipment, net. The Company rents its corporate headquarters facility in San Jose, California from a company owned by one of its former officers. In May 2021, the building was sold to a third-party but the lease terms remain unchanged. The lease was executed in January 2017 and expires in December 2027, as amended. Lease cost or rent expense under this lease was $1.4 million, $3.3 million and $3.1 million, respectively, for the first five months in 2021, years 2020 and 2019.

Subsequent Events

Subsequent Events	12 Months Ended
Subsequent Events	Dec. 31, 2021
Subsequent Events [Abstract]
Subsequent Events	Subsequent EventOn February 4, 2022, the Company and Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”) entered into a transaction agreement, pursuant to which Velodyne agreed to issue to Amazom.com NV Investment Holdings LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Amazon, a warrant to acquire up to an aggregate of 39,594,032 shares of the Company’s common stock, subject to certain vesting conditions. The warrant shares may vest based on discretionary payments of up to $200 million by Amazon or its affiliates (directly or indirectly through third parties) to the Company in connection with Amazon’s purchase of goods and services from the Company. Upon vesting, the warrant may be exercised, in whole or in part and for cash or on a net exercise basis, at an exercise price of $4.18 per share. The warrant has a term of eight years and contains customary anti-dilution and change-in-control provisions.

Description of Business and S_2

Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	The consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Principles of Consolidation	The Business Combination is accounted for as a reverse recapitalization as the pre-combination Velodyne was determined to be the accounting acquirer under Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”)’s Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 805, Business Combinations. In connection with the Business Combination, outstanding capital stock of the pre-combination Velodyne was converted into common stock of the Company, par value $0.0001 per share, representing a recapitalization, and the net assets of the Company were acquired at historical cost, with no goodwill or intangible assets recorded. The pre-combination Velodyne was deemed to be the predecessor of the Company, and the consolidated assets and liabilities and results of operations prior to the Closing Date are those of the pre-combination Velodyne. The shares and corresponding capital amounts and net loss per share available to common stockholders, prior to the Business Combination, have been retroactively restated as shares reflecting the exchange ratio established in the Merger Agreement. The number of shares of preferred stock was also retroactively restated in shares reflecting the exchange ratio, and the carrying amounts of preferred stock are based on the fair value of its redemption amount on each reporting date. All preferred stock was converted into shares of the Company’s common stock on the Closing Date. Refer to Note 10, Stockholders’ Equity, and Note 12, Net Loss Per Share, for further discussion of the recapitalization and share adjustments.
Concentration of Risk	Financial instruments that subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, and accounts receivable. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalents, and short-term investments with high-quality financial institutes with investment-grade ratings. A majority of the cash balances are with U.S. banks and are insured to the extent defined by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The Company’s accounts receivable are derived from customers located both inside and outside the U.S. The Company mitigates its credit risks by performing ongoing credit evaluations of its customers’ financial conditions and requires customer advance payments in certain circumstances. The Company does not require collateral.
Use of Estimates	The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include standalone selling price (“SSP”) for each distinct performance obligation in its customer contracts, total estimated future patents and their corresponding estimated development costs, total estimated costs and related progress towards complete satisfaction of performance obligation in certain services arrangements, allowances for doubtful accounts, inventory reserves, warranty reserves, valuation allowance for deferred tax assets, stock-based compensation, useful lives of property, plant, and equipment and intangible assets, income tax uncertainties, and other loss contingencies. The Company bases its estimates on historical experience and also on assumptions that it believes are reasonable. Actual results could differ from those estimates, and such differences could be material to the Company’s consolidated financial condition and results of operations.
Cash Equivalents	The Company considers all highly liquid investments with original maturity of three months or less at date of purchase to be cash equivalents.
Short-Term Investments	Short-term investments generally consist of commercial paper and corporate debt securities. They are classified as available-for-sale securities and are recognized at fair value. Marketable securities with maturities greater than one year are classified as current assets because management considers all marketable securities to be available to support current operations. The short-term investments are carried at fair value and the unrealized gains and losses, net of tax, are reported as a separate component of accumulated other comprehensive loss within the stockholders’ equity.
Accounts Receivable	Trade accounts receivable are recorded at the invoiced amount and do not bear interest. Accounts receivable are reduced by an allowance for doubtful accounts, which includes estimated losses that result from uncollectible accounts receivable. The Company determines the allowance by considering a number of factors, including the length of time trade accounts receivable are past due, its customer’s current financial condition and payment history, the condition of the general economy and the industry as a whole, and other relevant facts and circumstances. The Company continuously monitors collections and payments from its customers and maintains a provision for estimated credit losses based upon the aforementioned factors and any specific customer collection issues that have been identified. Significant changes in one or more of these considerations may require adjustments affecting the net income (loss) and net carrying value of the account receivable. Provisions for the estimated allowance for doubtful accounts are recorded in general and administrative expense at the end of each reporting period. The Company writes off accounts receivable against the allowance after all means of collection have been exhausted and the potential for recovery is considered remote.The Company does not have any off-balance-sheet credit exposure related to its customers.
Inventories	Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or estimated net realizable value. Costs are computed under the standard cost method, which approximates actual costs determined on the first-in, first-out basis. The Company charges cost of revenue for write-downs of inventories which are obsolete or in excess of anticipated demand based on a consideration of marketability and product life cycle stage, product development plans, component cost trends, demand forecasts, historical revenue, and assumptions about future demand and market conditions. At the point of loss recognition, a new, lower-cost basis for that inventory is established, and subsequent changes in facts and circumstances do not result in restoration or increase in the newly established cost basis. The net decrease in the Company’s inventory reserve was $0.1 million, $0.7 million and $1.8 million for 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Property, Plant, and Equipment	Property, plant, and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization is calculated based on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets. Additions, major improvements and betterments are capitalized, and maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred. Assets are held in asset under construction until placed in service, upon which date, the Company begins to depreciate the assets over their estimated useful lives. The estimated useful lives of the assets are as follows: buildings, 15-30 years; building improvements, 7-15 years, leasehold improvements, the lesser of 5 years or the lease term; machinery and equipment, furniture and fixtures, vehicles and software, 3-5 years.
Assets Held for Sale and Long-Lived Assets	The Company considers assets to be held for sale when management approves and commits to a plan to actively market the assets for sale at a reasonable price in relation to its fair value, the assets are available for immediate sale in their present condition, an active program to locate a buyer and other actions required to complete the sale have been initiated, the sale of the assets is expected to be completed within one year and it is unlikely that significant changes will be made to the plan. Upon designation as held for sale, the Company ceases to record deprecation expenses and measures the assets at the lower of their carrying value or estimated fair value less costs to sell. Assets held for sale are included as other current assets in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets and the gain or loss from sale of assets held for sale is included in the Company's operating expenses.Long-lived assets, such as property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and other long-term assets, are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If circumstances require a long-lived asset or asset group be tested for possible impairment, the Company first compares undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by that asset or asset group to its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of the long-lived asset or asset group is not recoverable on an undiscounted cash flow basis, an impairment is recognized to the extent that the carrying amount exceeds its fair value. Fair value is determined using various valuation techniques including discounted cash flow models, quoted market values, as considered necessary.
Business Combinations	For acquisitions meeting the definition of a business combination, the acquisition method of accounting is used. The acquisition date is the date on which the Company obtains operating control over the acquired business. The consideration paid is determined on the acquisition date and the acquisition-related costs, such as professional fees, are excluded from the consideration transferred and are expensed as incurred. Assets acquired and liabilities assumed by the Company are recorded at their estimated fair values, while goodwill is measured as the excess of the consideration transferred over the fair value of the net identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed.
Goodwill	Goodwill represents the difference between the purchase price and the fair value of the identifiable tangible and intangible net assets acquired and liabilities assumed when accounted for using the purchase method of accounting. Goodwill is not amortized, but reviewed for impairment. Goodwill is reviewed annually in the fourth quarter, and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the goodwill may not be recoverable. When evaluating recoverability, the Company compares the fair value of the reporting unit to its carrying value. If the carrying value of the net assets assigned to the reporting unit exceeds the fair value of our reporting unit, the Company would record an impairment loss equal to the difference.
Foreign Currency	The U.S. dollar is the functional currency of the Company’s consolidated entities operating in the U.S. and certain of its subsidiaries operating outside of the U.S. For transactions entered into a currency other than its functional currency, the monetary assets and liabilities are re-measured into U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate as of the applicable balance sheet date, and all non-monetary assets and liabilities are re-measured at historical rates. Income and expenses are re-measured at the average exchange rate prevailing during the period. Gains and losses resulting from the re-measurement of these subsidiaries’ financial statements are included in the consolidated statements of operations. For foreign subsidiaries whose functional currency is the local currency, assets and liabilities are translated at the local current exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date, and income and expense accounts are translated at the average exchange rates during the period. The resulting translation adjustments are included in accumulated other comprehensive loss. Gains and losses resulting from foreign exchange transactions and revaluation of monetary assets and liabilities in non-functional currencies are included in other income (expense) in the consolidated statements of operations. Net foreign exchange gain (loss) recorded in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations was insignificant for all periods presented.
Revenue Recognition	The Company accounts for a contract with a customer when both parties have approved the contract and are committed to perform their respective obligations, each party’s rights can be identified, payment terms can be identified, the contract has commercial substance, and it is probable that the Company will collect substantially all of the consideration it is entitled to. Revenue is recognized when, or as, performance obligations are satisfied by transferring control of a promised product or service to a customer. Nature of Products and Services and Revenue Recognition The majority of the Company’s revenue comes from product sales of lidar sensors to direct customers and distributors. Revenue is recognized at a point in time when control of the goods are transferred to the customer, generally occurring upon shipment or delivery dependent upon the terms of the underlying contract. Product sales to certain customers may require customer acceptance due to performance acceptance criteria that is considered more than a formality. For these product sales, revenue is recognized upon the expiration of the customer acceptance period. For custom products that require engineering and development based on customer requirements, the Company recognizes revenue over time using an output method based on units of product shipped to date relative to total production units under the contract. Amounts billed to customers for shipping and handling are included in revenue. Taxes collected from customers and remitted to governmental authorities are excluded from revenue on the net basis of accounting. Accounts receivable are due under normal trade terms, typically 60 days or less. The Company’s license and services revenue consist primarily of product development, validation and repair services, intellectual property (“IP”) license and royalties revenue. The obligation to provide services is generally satisfied over time, with the customer simultaneously receiving and consuming the benefits as the Company satisfies its performance obligations. For product development and validation service projects, the Company bills and recognizes revenue as the services are performed. For these arrangements, control is transferred over as the Company’s inputs incurred to complete the project; therefore, revenue is recognized over the service period with the measure of progress using the input method based on labor costs incurred to total labor cost (“cost-to-cost”) as the services are provided. For product repair service, revenue is recognized when the repair services are complete and repaired products are shipped to customer. The Company licenses rights to its IP to certain customers and collects royalties based on customer’s product sales. IP revenue recognition is dependent on the nature and terms of each agreement. The Company recognizes license revenue upon delivery of the IP if there are no substantive future obligations to perform under the arrangement. Contract liabilities are recorded when license payments received from licensees relating to long-term license contracts for which the Company has future obligations under the license agreements. The Company classifies contract liabilities as current if the Company expects to recognize the related revenue over the next 12 months from the balance sheet date. Royalties from the license of IP are recognized at the later of the period the sales occur or the satisfaction of the performance obligation to which some or all of the royalties have been allocated. Arrangements with Multiple Performance Obligations When a contract involves multiple performance obligations, the Company accounts for individual products and services separately if the customer can benefit from the product or service on its own or with other resources that are readily available to the customer and the product or service is separately identifiable from other promises in the arrangement. The consideration is allocated between separate performance obligations in proportion to their estimated SSP. The SSP reflects the price the Company would charge for a specific product or service if it were sold separately in similar circumstances and to similar customers. If the selling price is not directly observable, the Company generally uses the cost plus margin approach to estimate SSP. For patent cross-license arrangements, the Company estimates the SSP of the patents based on historical or forecasted development costs for existing and future patents granted or to be granted to customers. Costs related to products delivered are recognized in the period revenue is recognized. The Company provides standard product warranties for a term of typically one year to ensure that its products comply with agreed-upon specifications. Standard warranties are considered to be assurance type warranties and are not accounted for as separate performance obligations. Please see Product Warranty for accounting policy on standard warranties. The Company also provides service type extended warranties for an additional term ranging up to two Other Policies, Judgments and Practical Expedients Costs to obtain a contract. The Company generally expenses the incremental costs of obtaining a contract when incurred because the amortization period for these costs would be less than one year. These costs primarily relate to sales commissions and are recorded at the time of the customer order or product shipment in sales and marketing expense in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations. Commission expense was $0.4 million, $0.7 million and $0.5 million, respectively, for 2021, 2020 and 2019. Right of return. The Company’s general terms and conditions for its contracts do not contain a right of return that allows the customer to return products and receive a credit. Therefore the Company does not estimate returns and generally recognizes revenue at contract price upon product shipment or delivery. Remaining performance obligations. Revenue allocated to remaining performance obligations represents the transaction price allocated to the performance obligations that are unsatisfied, or partially unsatisfied. It includes unearned revenue and amounts that will be invoiced and recognized as revenue in future periods and does not include contracts where the customer is not committed. The customer is not considered committed where they are able to terminate for convenience without payment of a substantive penalty under the contract. Additionally, as a practical expedient, the Company has not disclosed the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for contracts with an original expected length of one year or less. The amount of the transaction price allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations with a duration of more than 12 months is recorded in long-term contract liability. Significant financing component. In certain arrangements, the Company receives payment from a customer either before or after the performance obligation has been satisfied. The expected timing difference between the payment and satisfaction of performance obligations for the vast majority of the Company’s contracts is one year or less; therefore, the Company applies a practical expedient and does not consider the effects of the time value of money. The Company’s contracts with customer prepayment terms do not include a significant financing component because the primary purpose is not to receive financing from the customers. For arrangements with licenses of intellectual property that include subsequent minimum royalty payments more than one year, the Company adjusts the amount of recorded revenue to reflect the effects of the time value of money if the timing of payments agreed to by the parties to the contract (either explicitly or implicitly) provides the customer with a significant benefit of financing. The effect of the significant financing component will be recognized as interest income separately from revenue from contracts with customers. Contract modifications. The Company may modify contracts to offer customers additional products or services. Each of the additional products and services are generally considered distinct from those products or services transferred to the customer before the modification. The Company evaluates whether the contract price for the additional products and services reflects the standalone selling price as adjusted for facts and circumstances applicable to that contract. In these cases, the Company accounts for the additional products or services as a separate contract. In other cases where the pricing in the modification does not reflect the standalone selling price as adjusted for facts and circumstances applicable to that contract, the Company accounts for the additional products or services as part of the existing contract primarily on a prospective basis. Judgments and estimates. Accounting for contracts recognized over time involves the use of various techniques to estimate total contract revenue and costs. Due to uncertainties inherent in the estimation process, it is possible that estimates of costs to complete a performance obligation will be revised in the near-term. The Company reviews and updates its contract-related estimates regularly, and records adjustments as needed. For those performance obligations for which revenue is recognized using a cost-to-cost input method, changes in total estimated costs, and related progress towards complete satisfaction of the performance obligation, are recognized in the period in which the revisions to the estimates are made.
Research and Development	Research and development costs are expensed as incurred.
Advertising	Advertising costs are expensed as incurred and
Stock-Based Compensation Expense	Stock-based compensation consists of expense for stock options, RSAs and RSUs granted to employees and nonemployees based on the stock award’s grant date fair value. The Company uses the fair market value of its common stock to estimate the fair value of its RSAs and RSUs and uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to estimate the fair value of its stock options and purchase rights issued under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”). For market-based performance RSUs (“PRSU”s), the Company uses the Monte Carlo simulation model (a binomial lattice-based valuation model) to determine the fair value. Stock-based compensation expense for stock options and service-condition awards that are expected to vest is recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. For performance-based awards, expense is recognized when it is probable the performance goal will be achieved, however if the likelihood becomes improbable, that expense is reversed. The Company recognizes forfeitures as they occur. As a result of the Business Combination, on October 30, 2020 and May 18, 2021, the Board waived the liquidity event vesting condition applicable to outstanding shares of pre-combination Velodyne's RSUs and RSAs, respectively. As such, the Company's outstanding RSUs and RSAs vested to the extent the applicable service condition was satisfied as of such date. The Company accounted for the modification as an exchange of the original award, that was not expected to vest, for a new award.The fair value of the RSUs and RSAs were re-measured based on the fair market value of the underlying Velodyne common stock on the modification date. The compensation expenses resulting from the modification are recognized ratably over the remaining requisite service period or recognized immediately to the extent the service condition of the RSUs and RSAs has been satisfied as of the modification date.
Income Taxes	Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rate is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. The Company recognizes the effect of income tax positions only if those positions are more likely than not of being sustained. Recognized income tax positions are measured at the largest amount that is greater than 50% likely of being realized. Changes in recognition or measurement are reflected in the period in which the change in judgment occurs.
Leases	The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception. The Company evaluates classification of leases at commencement and, as necessary, at modification. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, all leases are classified as operating leases except for certain immaterial equipment finance leases. Operating leases, consisting primarily office leases, are included in other assets, other current liabilities, and other long-term liabilities on the Company's consolidated balance sheets. ROU assets represent the Company's right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent its obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized on the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any lease payments made prior to lease commencement and excludes lease incentives. Variable lease payments not dependent on an index or a rate, are expensed as incurred and are not included within the ROU asset and lease liability calculation. Variable lease payments primarily include reimbursements of costs incurred by lessors for common area maintenance and utilities. The Company's lease terms are the noncancelable period, including any rent-free periods provided by the lessor, and include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that it will exercise that option. At lease inception, and in subsequent periods as necessary, the Company estimates the lease term based on its assessment of extension and termination options that are reasonably certain to be exercised. As the Company's leases do not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses an incremental borrowing rate based on information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The incremental borrowing rate is a hypothetical rate based on the Company's understanding of what its credit rating would be for a secured borrowing where the lease was executed. Lease costs are recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
Commitments and Contingencies	Liabilities for loss contingencies arising from claims, assessments, litigation, fines, and penalties and other sources are recorded when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss or the amount within a range of loss can be reasonably estimated. When no amount within the range is a better estimate than any other amount, the Company accrues for the minimum amount within the range. Legal costs incurred in connection with loss contingencies are expensed as incurred.
Product Warranties	The Company typically provides a one-year warranty on its products. Estimated future warranty costs are accrued and charged to cost of revenue in the period that the related revenue is recognized. These estimates are based on historical warranty experience and any known or expected changes in warranty exposure, such as trends of product reliability and costs of repairing and replacing defective products. The Company periodically assesses the adequacy of its recorded warranty liabilities and adjusts the amounts as necessary.
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements	In February 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016-02, Leases (“Topic 842”), which supersedes FASB Accounting Standards Codification Topic 840, Leases (“Topic 840”), and provides principles for the recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of leases for both lessees and lessors. Among its provisions, this standard requires lessees to recognize ROU assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheets for operating leases, and also requires additional qualitative and quantitative disclosures about lease arrangements. The Company adopted the new standard in the first quarter of 2021 using the modified retrospective method, under which the Company applies Topic 842 to existing and new leases as of January 1, 2021, but prior periods are not restated and continue to be reported under Topic 840 guidance in effect during those periods. Upon adoption, the Company recorded net ROU assets of $19.4 million and lease liabilities of $20.4 million and there were no cumulative effect adjustments as of January 1, 2021. The standard did not have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated statements of operations and the consolidated statement of cash flows. See Note 6. “Leases” for further information. In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. This standard simplifies the accounting for income taxes by, among other things, eliminating certain exceptions related to the approach for intra-period tax allocation, the methodology for calculating income taxes in an interim period and the recognition of deferred tax liabilities for outside basis differences. ASU 2019-12 is effective for public business entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. Upon adoption, the Company must apply certain aspects of this standard retrospectively for all periods presented while other aspects are applied on a modified retrospective basis through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption. The Company adopted the new standard on January 1, 2021. The adoption of this new standard did not have a significant effect on our consolidated financial statements.
Fair Value Measurement	The Company categorizes assets and liabilities recorded at fair value on the consolidated balance sheet based on the level of judgment associated with inputs used to measure their fair value. For assets and liabilities measured at fair value, fair value is the price that would be received from selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. When determining fair value, the Company considers the principal or most advantageous market in which the Company would transact, and the Company considers assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability. The three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value are: • Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2 — Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, such as quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets or quoted prices in less active market. All significant inputs used in the valuations are observable or can be directly or indirectly through market corroboration, for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities. • Level 3 — Unobservable inputs are based on assumptions used to measure assets and liabilities at fair value. The inputs require significant management judgment or estimation. The Company monitors and review the inputs to ensure the fair value measurements are reasonable and consistent with market experience in similar asset classes.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share	Basic net income (loss) per share is computed based on the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted net income (loss) per share is computed based on the weighted average number of common shares outstanding plus the effect of dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period using the treasury stock method. During the periods when there is a net loss, potentially dilutive common stock equivalents have been excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share as their effect is anti-dilutive.

Description of Business and S_3

Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Concentration of Risk Related to Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable	The Company’s concentration of risk related to accounts receivable and accounts payable was as follows: December 31, 2021 2020 Number of customers accounted for 10% or more of accounts receivable 3 3 Number of vendors accounted for 10% or more of accounts payable 1 3 Revenue by countries and customers that accounted for more than 10% of revenue was as follows: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Countries over 10% of revenue: U.S. 35 % 34 % 46 % China 30 % 31 % 11 % Sweden 13 % * * Number of customers that accounted for over 10% of revenue: 2 2 2 * Less than 10%.
Changes in the Allowance For Doubtful Accounts	Changes in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts were as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Beginning balance $ 876 $ 467 $ 357 Charged to costs and expenses 2,331 511 110 Uncollectible accounts written off, net of recoveries — (102) — Ending balance $ 3,207 $ 876 $ 467

Revenue (Tables)

Revenue (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Revenue (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Disaggregation of Revenues	Total revenue based on the disaggregation criteria described above is as follows (dollar in thousands, percentage may not foot due to rounding difference): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 % of Revenue % of Revenue % of Revenue Revenue Revenue Revenue Revenue by geography: North America $ 23,313 38 % $ 41,228 43 % $ 49,634 49 % Asia Pacific 25,977 42 % 39,310 41 % 28,791 28 % Europe, Middle East and Africa 12,634 20 % 14,824 16 % 22,973 23 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 % Revenue by products and services: Products $ 48,002 78 % $ 68,355 72 % $ 81,424 80 % License and services 13,922 22 % 27,007 28 % 19,974 20 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 % Revenue by timing of recognition: Goods transferred at a point in time $ 56,569 91 % $ 92,550 97 % $ 92,890 92 % Goods and services transferred over time 5,355 9 % 2,812 3 % 8,508 8 % Total $ 61,924 100 % $ 95,362 100 % $ 101,398 100 %
Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities	Contract assets and contract liabilities consisted of the following as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Contract assets, current Unbilled accounts receivable $ 3,313 $ 2,813 Contract assets, long-term Unbilled accounts receivable 12,962 8,440 Total contract assets $ 16,275 $ 11,253 Contract liabilities, current Deferred revenue, current $ 6,209 $ 7,143 Customer advance payment 139 180 Total 6,348 7,323 Contract liabilities, long-term Deferred revenue, long-term 12,740 14,732 Total contract liabilities $ 19,088 $ 22,055 The following table shows the significant changes in contract assets and contract liabilities balances (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Contract assets: Beginning balance $ 11,253 $ — $ — Transferred to receivables from contract assets recognized at the beginning of the period (2,813) — — Increase due to unbilled and recognized as revenue in excess of billings during the period, net of amounts transferred to receivables 7,835 11,253 — Ending balance $ 16,275 $ 11,253 $ — Contract liabilities: Beginning balance $ 22,055 $ 19,164 $ 20,911 Revenue recognized that was included in the contract liabilities beginning balance (7,298) (12,182) (3,149) Increase due to cash received and not recognized as revenue and billings in excess of revenue recognized during the period 4,331 21,156 1,402 Customer deposits reclassified to refund liabilities — (6,083) — Ending balance $ 19,088 $ 22,055 $ 19,164

Fair Value Measurement (Tables)

Fair Value Measurement (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Fair Value Measurement (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Summary of Assets Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis	The following table summarize the Company’s assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis, by level, within the fair value hierarchy (in thousands): December 31, 2021 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Cash equivalents: Money market fund $ 391 $ — $ — $ 391 Total cash equivalents 391 — — 391 Short-term investments: Money market fund 7 — — 7 Commercial paper — 130,983 — 130,983 Corporate debt securities — 139,367 — 139,367 Total short-term investments 7 270,350 — 270,357 Total assets measured at fair value $ 398 $ 270,350 $ — $ 270,748 December 31, 2020 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Cash equivalents: Money market fund $ 74,107 $ — $ — $ 74,107 Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities 19,999 — — 19,999 Corporate debt securities — 2,003 — 2,003 Commercial paper — 33,295 — 33,295 Total cash equivalents 94,106 35,298 — 129,404 Short-term investments: Commercial paper — 122,265 — 122,265 Corporate debt securities — 23,371 — 23,371 Total short-term investments — 145,636 — 145,636 Total assets measured at fair value $ 94,106 $ 180,934 $ — $ 275,040

Balance Sheet Components (Table

Balance Sheet Components (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Balance Sheet Components (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Accounts Receivable, Net	Accounts receivables, net consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Accounts receivable $ 12,088 $ 14,855 Allowance for doubtful accounts (3,207) (876) Accounts receivable, net $ 8,881 $ 13,979
Inventories, Net of Reserve	Inventories, net of reserve, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Raw materials $ 6,585 $ 6,876 Work-in-process 1,883 4,347 Finished goods 831 6,909 Total inventories $ 9,299 $ 18,132
Prepaid and Other Current Assets	Prepaid and other current assets consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Prepaid expenses and deposits $ 7,883 $ 5,698 Due from contract manufacturers and vendors 1,302 2,944 Prepaid taxes 1,223 1,612 Contract assets 3,313 2,813 Receivable from warrant exercises — 9,074 Other 1,101 178 Total prepaid and other current assets $ 14,822 $ 22,319
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net	Property, plant and equipment, at cost, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Machinery and equipment $ 36,264 $ 32,688 Leasehold improvements 6,752 5,905 Furniture and fixtures 1,497 1,479 Vehicles 359 360 Software 1,337 1,357 Assets under construction 1,900 641 48,109 42,430 Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization (33,399) (25,625) Property, plant and equipment, net $ 14,710 $ 16,805 Finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment) $ 888 $ 888 Less: accumulated depreciation (559) (381) Finance lease equipment, net $ 329 $ 507 The aggregate depreciation and amortization related to property, plant and equipment was as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Depreciation and amortization on property, plant and equipment $ 8,052 $ 8,009 $ 7,805 Depreciation on finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment) 178 178 122
Intangible Assets, Net	Intangible assets, net, consist of the following (in thousands): Gross Carrying Amount Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value As of December 31, 2021: Developed technology $ 1,696 $ 972 $ 724 As of December 31, 2020: Developed technology $ 1,200 $ 573 $ 627
Amortization of Intangible Assets	Amortization of intangible assets is as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Amortization of intangible assets $ 399 $ 385 $ 188
Other Assets, Non-Current	Other assets, non-current, consist of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Operating lease ROU assets $ 16,891 $ — Notes receivable 750 — Deposits and other 772 937 Total other assets $ 18,413 $ 937
Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities	Accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Accrued payroll expenses $ 13,550 $ 11,877 Accrued manufacturing costs 3,925 8,003 Accrued transaction costs 5,000 25,057 Accrued professional and consulting fees 3,411 965 Accrued warranty costs 1,934 2,204 Accrued taxes 1,017 1,074 Lease liabilities 2,623 — Legal proceedings accrual 825 75 Other 3,366 1,094 Total accrued expense and other current liabilities $ 35,651 $ 50,349
Long-Term Liabilities	Long-term liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 PPP loan $ — $ 10,000 Contract liabilities, long-term 12,740 14,732 Lease liabilities, long-term 15,210 — Other 661 1,195 Total long-term liabilities $ 28,611 $ 25,927

Leases (Tables)

Leases (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Leases (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Leases [Abstract]
Other Information Related to Leases	Other information related to leases were as follows (in thousands, except years and percentages): Year Ended December 31, 2021 Supplemental cash flow information: Cash paid for operating leases included in operating cash flows $ 4,263 ROU assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities $ 498 December 31, 2021 Supplemental balance sheet information: Other assets $ 16,891 Total operating ROU assets $ 16,891 Other current liabilities $ 2,623 Other long-term liabilities 15,210 Total lease liabilities $ 17,833 Weighted average remaining lease term (years) 5.91 Weighted average discount rate 6.37 %
Maturities of Operating Lease Liabilities	As of December 31, 2021, maturities of lease liabilities were as follows, which excludes $1.2 million of legally binding minimum lease payments for leases that have been signed but not yet commenced: Years Ending December 31, Finance Leases Operating Leases 2022 $ 14 $ 3,585 2023 — 3,398 2024 — 3,459 2025 — 3,563 2026 — 3,670 Thereafter — 3,780 Total lease payments 14 $ 21,455 Less amount representing interest — (3,622) Present value of lease liabilities $ 14 $ 17,833
Maturities of Finance Lease Liabilities	As of December 31, 2021, maturities of lease liabilities were as follows, which excludes $1.2 million of legally binding minimum lease payments for leases that have been signed but not yet commenced: Years Ending December 31, Finance Leases Operating Leases 2022 $ 14 $ 3,585 2023 — 3,398 2024 — 3,459 2025 — 3,563 2026 — 3,670 Thereafter — 3,780 Total lease payments 14 $ 21,455 Less amount representing interest — (3,622) Present value of lease liabilities $ 14 $ 17,833

Mapper Acquisition (Tables)

Mapper Acquisition (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Mapper Acquisition (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Business Combination and Asset Acquisition [Abstract]
Purchase Price Allocation	The total purchase price is allocated to acquired assets based on their estimated fair value at the acquisition date as follows (in thousands): Assets Acquired: Amount Developed technology $ 1,140 Property and equipment 144 Goodwill 1,189 Total purchase price $ 2,473

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_2

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Equity [Abstract]
Composition of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Accumulated other comprehensive loss was comprised of the following as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Foreign currency translation loss $ (184) $ (170) Unrealized loss on investments (228) (60) Total accumulated other comprehensive loss $ (412) $ (230)

Stockholders_ Equity (Tables)

Stockholders’ Equity (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Stockholders’ Equity (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Equity [Abstract]
Summary of Common Stock Outstanding	The following summarizes the Company’s common stock outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020: December 31, 2021 2020 Converted pre-combination Velodyne common stock outstanding 82,024,874 101,849,247 Converted pre-combination Velodyne preferred stock outstanding 24,772,759 24,772,759 Graf Founder shares 157,800 2,575,000 Other stockholders 90,391,242 46,715,188 Total common stock issued and outstanding 197,346,675 175,912,194
Summary of Common Stock Issuances Related to the Warrant Exercises	The following summarizes the Company’s common stock issuance related to the warrant exercises: December 31, 2021 2020 Warrants outstanding upon Closing 24,876,512 24,876,512 Warrants exercised to date 18,902,642 9,598,538 Warrants outstanding 5,973,870 15,277,974 Aggregated common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 18,657,384 18,657,384 Common shares issued upon exercise of warrants 14,176,959 7,198,898 Remaining common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants 4,480,425 11,458,486

Stock-Based Compensation (Table

Stock-Based Compensation (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Stock-Based Compensation (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]
Summary of Stock Option Activity under Equity Plans	A summary of stock option activities during 2021 is as follows: Shares Weighted Average Exercise Price Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life Aggregate Intrinsic Value (Years) (In thousands) Option: Options outstanding as of December 31, 2020 597,354 $5.86 Exercised (440,673) $5.74 Expired (146,890) $6.15 Options outstanding as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ — Options exercisable as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ — Options vested and expected to vest as of December 31, 2021 9,791 $7.04 2.44 $ —
Summary of RSU and RSA Activity under Equity Plans	A summary of RSA and RSU activities during 2021 is as follows: Shares Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value per Share RSA: RSAs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 4,183,624 $10.78 Granted 211,298 $6.63 Released (4,183,624) $10.78 RSAs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 211,298 $6.63 RSU: RSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 11,983,636 $12.43 Granted 4,253,681 $9.86 Released (9,403,574) $12.44 Forfeited (1,706,847) $11.71 RSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 5,126,896 $10.51 PRSU: PRSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2020 1,101,683 $6.72 Granted 9,141 $1.97 Forfeited (780,319) $6.66 PRSUs outstanding as of December 31, 2021 330,505 $6.72
Summary of Additional Information Related to Awards	Additional information related to stock options, RSA and RSU is summarized below (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Intrinsic value of options exercised $ 230 $ — $ — Fair value of RSA released 45,099 — — Fair value of RSUs released 104,801 — —
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value and Assumptions Used as Inputs for Options	The following table sets forth the weighted average grant date fair value for options and ESPP purchase rights and the assumptions used as inputs for the Black-Scholes option pricing model for the applicable periods: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 Stock options: Weighted average grant date fair value of options $2.10 Expected term, in years 5.55 Expected volatility 39.82% Risk-free interest rate 0.371% Expected dividend yield —% ESPP: Weighted average grant date fair value of ESPP purchase rights $2.87 Expected term, in years 0.73 Expected volatility 90.17% Risk-free interest rate 0.14% Expected dividend yield —%
Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value and Assumptions Used as Inputs for PRSUs	The following table sets forth the weighted average modification date fair value for market-based PRSUs and the assumptions used as inputs for the Monte Carlo simulation model for the applicable period: Year Ended Weighted average modification date fair value of PRSUs $6.72 Expected term, in years 2.17 Expected volatility 49.00% Risk-free interest rate 0.15% Expected dividend yield —%
Stock-Based Compensation Expense	The following table presents stock-based compensation expense included in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Cost of revenue $ 2,050 $ 7,417 $ — Research and development 12,787 37,030 97 Sales and marketing 46,259 14,773 — General and administrative 26,007 32,280 38 Total stock-based compensation expense $ 87,103 $ 91,500 $ 135

Net Loss Per Share (Tables)

Net Loss Per Share (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Net Loss Per Share (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Common Stock Equivalents Excluded From the Computation of Diluted Net Income (Loss) Per Share	The following common stock equivalents have also been excluded from the computation of diluted net loss per share for the periods presented because including them would have been antidilutive (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Stock options 10 597 157 RSAs 211 4,184 4,184 RSUs (non-vested) 4,881 6,320 9,540 Total 5,102 11,101 13,881

Income Taxes (Tables)

Income Taxes (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Summary of Loss Before Income Taxes and Provision For (Benefit From) Income Taxes	Loss before income taxes consisted of the followings (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Domestic $ (212,156) $ (154,290) $ (68,645) Foreign 565 342 736 Loss before income taxes $ (211,591) $ (153,948) $ (67,909)
Provision for (Benefit from) Income Taxes	Provision for (benefit from) income taxes consisted of the following (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Current: Federal $ 584 $ (4,124) $ 958 State (70) (20) (130) Foreign 128 56 430 Total Current 642 (4,088) 1,258 Deferred: Federal 3 3 (1,942) State — 1 1 Total Deferred 3 4 (1,941) Provision for (benefit from) income taxes $ 645 $ (4,084) $ (683)
Reconciliation of U.S. Federal Provision at Statutory Rate to the Effective Tax Rate	The provision for (benefit from) income taxes differ from the amounts computed by applying the U.S. federal income tax rate to income (loss) before income taxes for the following reasons: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 U.S. federal provision at statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 21.0 % State income taxes, net of federal benefit 0.3 1.5 1.3 Foreign income taxes at rates other than the U.S. rate — — (0.4) Tax credits 2.5 3.0 6.7 Withholding taxes (0.3) (1.7) (1.5) Permanent items 1.0 (1.4) (0.2) Uncertain tax benefits (0.5) (0.2) (0.2) 2019 CARES Act impact — 4.3 — Prior year return to provision adjustments 0.6 (1.7) (0.1) Change in valuation allowance (18.2) (22.0) (25.7) Stock-based compensation, net of tax deductions (6.6) — — Other (0.1) (0.1) 0.1 Effective tax rate (0.3) % 2.7 % 1.0 %
Deferred Income Tax Assets and Liabilities	The Company’s deferred income tax assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 were as follows (in thousands): December 31, 2021 2020 Deferred tax assets: Net operating loss carryforward $ 82,350 $ 42,698 Tax credits 20,843 13,387 Deferred revenue 3,796 224 Accruals and reserves 3,791 3,449 Inventories 1,712 1,850 Stock-based compensation 1,330 16,179 Intangibles 1,951 94 Lease liabilities 3,879 — Other 8 23 Total deferred tax assets 119,660 77,904 Deferred tax liabilities: Depreciation and amortization (263) (1,203) ROU assets (3,665) — Prepaids (1,486) (1,149) Total deferred tax liabilities (5,414) (2,352) Net deferred tax assets before valuation allowance 114,246 75,552 Valuation allowance (114,256) (75,558) Net deferred tax liabilities $ (10) $ (6)
Summary of the Aggregate Changes in Unrecognized Tax Benefits	The following table summarizes the aggregate changes in the total gross amount of unrecognized tax benefits (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Unrecognized tax benefits as of the beginning of the year $ 5,785 $ 4,188 $ 2,824 Increases related to prior year tax provisions 226 400 308 Increase related to current year tax provisions 4,226 1,240 1,282 Statute lapse — (43) (226) Unrecognized tax benefits as of the end of the year $ 10,237 $ 5,785 $ 4,188

Commitments and Contingencies (

Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Summary of Purchase and Other Commitments	The following table summarizes contractual obligations and commitments as of December 31, 2021 (in thousands): Years Ending December 31, Purchase Commitments Other Contractual Commitments 2022 $ 50,344 $ 409 2023 — 156 2024 — 26 Total $ 50,344 $ 591
Changes in the Accrued Warranty Liability	The following table summarizes the activity related to product warranty liabilities and their balances as included in other accrued expenses (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Balance as of the beginning of the period $ 2,204 $ 4,322 $ 3,531 Warranty provision 2,599 4,316 6,531 Consumption (2,217) (2,700) (4,939) Changes in provision estimates (652) (3,734) (801) Balance as of the end of the period $ 1,934 $ 2,204 $ 4,322

Segment, Geographic and Custo_2

Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Revenue by Region and Country	The Company reports revenue by region and country based on the location where its customers accept delivery of its products and services. Revenue by region was as follows (dollar amount in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Revenue by region: North America $ 23,313 $ 41,228 $ 49,634 Asia Pacific 25,977 39,310 28,791 Europe, Middle East and Africa 12,634 14,824 22,973 Total $ 61,924 $ 95,362 $ 101,398 % of Revenue by region: North America 38 % 43 % 49 % Asia Pacific 42 % 41 % 28 % Europe, Middle East and Africa 20 % 16 % 23 % Total 100 % 100 % 100 %
Revenue by Countries and Customers Accounted For More Than 10%	The Company’s concentration of risk related to accounts receivable and accounts payable was as follows: December 31, 2021 2020 Number of customers accounted for 10% or more of accounts receivable 3 3 Number of vendors accounted for 10% or more of accounts payable 1 3 Revenue by countries and customers that accounted for more than 10% of revenue was as follows: Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Countries over 10% of revenue: U.S. 35 % 34 % 46 % China 30 % 31 % 11 % Sweden 13 % * * Number of customers that accounted for over 10% of revenue: 2 2 2 * Less than 10%.

Related Party Transactions (Tab

Related Party Transactions (Tables)	12 Months Ended
Related Party Transactions (Tables)	Dec. 31, 2021
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
Revenue and Accounts Receivable for Related Parties	Revenue and accounts receivable for these holders were as follows (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2021 2020 2019 Revenue: Stockholder A $ 347 465 $ (3,514) Stockholder B (1) N/A 7,008 1,391 Stockholder C — 764 6,148 December 31, 2021 2020 Accounts receivable: Stockholder A $ 219 $ — Stockholder B (1) N/A $ 3,085

Description of Business and S_4

Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Narrative (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)segment$ / shares	Dec. 31, 2020USD ($)$ / shares	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Jan. 01, 2021USD ($)	Sep. 29, 2020$ / shares
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Number of operating segments \| segment	1
Common stock, par value (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001			$ 0.0001
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 294,400,000
Net change in inventory reserves	(100,000)	$ (700,000)	$ (1,800,000)
Impairment loss on long-lived assets	$ 0	0	0
Standard product warranty term	1 year
Extended service-type warranty term	2 years
Commission expense	$ 400,000	700,000	500,000
Advertising costs	2,500,000	1,400,000	$ 2,300,000
Liabilities for loss contingencies	0	$ 0
Operating lease ROU assets	16,891,000
Lease liabilities	$ 17,833,000
Impact of Adoption
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Operating lease ROU assets				$ 19,400,000
Lease liabilities				$ 20,400,000
Maximum \| Building
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	30 years
Maximum \| Building improvements
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	15 years
Maximum \| Leasehold improvements
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	5 years
Maximum \| Vehicles
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	5 years
Maximum \| Machinery and equipment
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	5 years
Maximum \| Software
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	5 years
Maximum \| Furniture and fixtures
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	5 years
Minimum \| Building
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	15 years
Minimum \| Building improvements
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	7 years
Minimum \| Vehicles
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	3 years
Minimum \| Machinery and equipment
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	3 years
Minimum \| Software
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	3 years
Minimum \| Furniture and fixtures
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Estimated useful life of property, plant and equipment	3 years
Accounts Payable \| Supplier Concentration Risk \| One Vendor
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	28.00%	34.00%
Two Customers \| Accounts Receivable \| Customer Concentration Risk
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	30.00%	47.00%
Revolving Credit Facility \| 2020 Revolving Line \| Line of Credit
New Accounting Pronouncements or Change in Accounting Principle [Line Items]
Available borrowing capacity	$ 25,000,000

Description of Business and S_5

Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Changes in the Allowance For Doubtful Accounts (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounts Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	$ 876	$ 467	$ 357
Charged to costs and expenses	2,331	511	110
Uncollectible accounts written off, net of recoveries	0	(102)	0
Ending balance	$ 3,207	$ 876	$ 467

Business Combination and Rela_2

Business Combination and Related Transactions (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 29, 2020	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill		$ 1,189,000	$ 1,189,000
Cash paid to acquire business		0	0	$ 2,473,000
Payments for repurchase of stock	$ 1,800,000	0	1,802,000	$ 0
Repurchase of common stock (in shares)	175,744
Transaction cost	$ 29,100,000		29,100,000
Accrued transaction costs		$ 5,000,000	$ 25,057,000
Private Placement
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares issued (in shares)	15,000,000
Price per share (in USD per share)	$ 10
Aggregate purchase price	$ 150,000,000
Graf \| Pre-Combination Velodyne
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill	0
Other intangible assets	0
Aggregate consideration transferred	1,800,000,000
Cash paid to acquire business	$ 222,100,000
Shares transferred in acquisition (in shares)	150,277,532
Share price (in USD per share)	$ 10.25
Value of shares transferred in acquisition	$ 1,500,000,000
Graf \| Pre-Combination Velodyne \| Earnout RSUs
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares transferred in acquisition (in shares)	187,861
Service condition period	6 months
Graf \| Pre-Combination Velodyne \| Common Stock Issuable In Respect of Vested Equity Awards
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares transferred in acquisition (in shares)	143,575,763
Graf \| Pre-Combination Velodyne \| Common Stock Earned Due To the Satisfaction of the Earnout Condition
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares transferred in acquisition (in shares)	2,000,000
Graf \| Pre-Combination Velodyne \| Common Stock to Equity Holders That Did Not Opt To Have Their Respective Shares in the Pre-Closing Tender Offer
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Shares transferred in acquisition (in shares)	4,702,304

Revenue - Disaggregation of Rev

Revenue - Disaggregation of Revenues (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 61,924	$ 95,362	$ 101,398
Goods transferred at a point in time
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	56,569	92,550	92,890
Goods and services transferred over time
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 5,355	$ 2,812	$ 8,508
Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Revenue \| Product Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Revenue \| Timing of Recognition Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Revenue \| Timing of Recognition Concentration Risk \| Goods transferred at a point in time
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	91.00%	97.00%	92.00%
Revenue \| Timing of Recognition Concentration Risk \| Goods and services transferred over time
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	9.00%	3.00%	8.00%
Products
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 48,002	$ 68,355	$ 81,424
Products \| Revenue \| Product Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	78.00%	72.00%	80.00%
License and services
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 13,922	$ 27,007	$ 19,974
License and services \| Revenue \| Product Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	22.00%	28.00%	20.00%
North America
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 23,313	$ 41,228	$ 49,634
North America \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	38.00%	43.00%	49.00%
Asia Pacific
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 25,977	$ 39,310	$ 28,791
Asia Pacific \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	42.00%	41.00%	28.00%
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 12,634	$ 14,824	$ 22,973
Europe, Middle East and Africa \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	20.00%	16.00%	23.00%

Revenue - Narrative (Details)

Revenue - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
Revenue - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 61,924	$ 95,362	$ 101,398
Current deferred revenue	6,348	7,323
Deferred revenue, long-term	12,740	14,732
Contract asset	16,275	11,253	$ 0	$ 0
License \| Customer in Asia Pacific in Patent Cross-License Agreement
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenue	11,300	19,700
Current deferred revenue	3,800	3,400
Deferred revenue, long-term	11,900	13,700
Contract asset	$ 16,300	$ 11,300

Revenue - Composition of Contra

Revenue - Composition of Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Contract assets, current
Unbilled accounts receivable	$ 3,313	$ 2,813
Contract assets, long-term
Unbilled accounts receivable	12,962	8,440
Total contract assets	16,275	11,253	$ 0	$ 0
Contract liabilities, current
Deferred revenue, current	6,209	7,143
Customer advance payment	139	180
Total	6,348	7,323
Contract liabilities, long-term
Deferred revenue, long-term	12,740	14,732
Total contract liabilities	$ 19,088	$ 22,055	$ 19,164	$ 20,911

Revenue - Significant Changes i

Revenue - Significant Changes in Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities Balances (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Contract assets:
Beginning balance	$ 11,253	$ 0	$ 0
Transferred to receivables from contract assets recognized at the beginning of the period	(2,813)	0	0
Increase due to unbilled and recognized as revenue in excess of billings during the period, net of amounts transferred to receivables	7,835	11,253	0
Ending balance	16,275	11,253	0
Contract liabilities:
Beginning balance	22,055	19,164	20,911
Revenue recognized that was included in the contract liabilities beginning balance	(7,298)	(12,182)	(3,149)
Increase due to cash received and not recognized as revenue and billings in excess of revenue recognized during the period	4,331	21,156	1,402
Customer deposits reclassified to refund liabilities	0	(6,083)	0
Ending balance	$ 19,088	$ 22,055	$ 19,164

Fair Value Measurement (Details

Fair Value Measurement (Details) - Recurring - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	$ 391	$ 129,404
Short-term investments	270,357	145,636
Total assets measured at fair value	270,748	275,040
Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	391	94,106
Short-term investments	7	0
Total assets measured at fair value	398	94,106
Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	0	35,298
Short-term investments	270,350	145,636
Total assets measured at fair value	270,350	180,934
Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	0	0
Short-term investments	0	0
Total assets measured at fair value	0	0
Money market fund
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	7
Money market fund \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	7
Money market fund \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0
Money market fund \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0
Commercial paper
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	130,983	122,265
Commercial paper \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0	0
Commercial paper \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	130,983	122,265
Commercial paper \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0	0
Corporate debt securities
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	139,367	23,371
Corporate debt securities \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0	0
Corporate debt securities \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	139,367	23,371
Corporate debt securities \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Short-term investments	0	0
Money market fund
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	391	74,107
Money market fund \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	391	74,107
Money market fund \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	0	0
Money market fund \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents	$ 0	0
Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		19,999
Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		19,999
Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		0
Treasury bill and U.S. government and agency securities \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		0
Corporate debt securities
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		2,003
Corporate debt securities \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		0
Corporate debt securities \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		2,003
Corporate debt securities \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		0
Commercial paper
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		33,295
Commercial paper \| Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		0
Commercial paper \| Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		33,295
Commercial paper \| Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Cash equivalents		$ 0

Balance Sheet Components - Acco

Balance Sheet Components - Accounts Receivable, Net (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Accounts receivable	$ 12,088	$ 14,855
Allowance for doubtful accounts	(3,207)	(876)
Accounts receivable, net	$ 8,881	$ 13,979

Balance Sheet Components - Inve

Balance Sheet Components - Inventories, Net of Reserve (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Raw materials	$ 6,585	$ 6,876
Work-in-process	1,883	4,347
Finished goods	831	6,909
Total inventories	$ 9,299	$ 18,132

Balance Sheet Components - Narr

Balance Sheet Components - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2021	May 31, 2021
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Gross consigned inventory	$ 1,500,000
Notes Receivable
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Financing receivable		$ 750,000
Financing receivable, interest rate		0.00%

Balance Sheet Components - Prep

Balance Sheet Components - Prepaid and Other Current Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Prepaid expenses and deposits	$ 7,883	$ 5,698
Due from contract manufacturers and vendors	1,302	2,944
Prepaid taxes	1,223	1,612
Contract assets	3,313	2,813
Receivable from warrant exercises	0	9,074
Other	1,101	178
Total prepaid and other current assets	$ 14,822	$ 22,319

Balance Sheet Components - Prop

Balance Sheet Components - Property, Plant and Equipment, Net (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 48,109	$ 42,430
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization	(33,399)	(25,625)
Property, plant and equipment, net	14,710	16,805
Finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment)	888
Finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment)		888
Less: accumulated depreciation	$ (559)
Less: accumulated depreciation		(381)
Finance Lease, Right-of-Use Asset, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Property, plant and equipment, net
Finance lease equipment, net	$ 329
Finance lease equipment, net		507
Machinery and equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	36,264	32,688
Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	6,752	5,905
Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	1,497	1,479
Vehicles
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	359	360
Software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	1,337	1,357
Assets under construction
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 1,900	$ 641

Balance Sheet Components - Aggr

Balance Sheet Components - Aggregate Depreciation and Amortization Related to Property, Plant and Equipment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Depreciation and amortization on property, plant and equipment	$ 8,052	$ 8,009	$ 7,805
Depreciation on finance lease equipment (included in machinery and equipment)	$ 178	$ 178	$ 122

Balance Sheet Components - Inta

Balance Sheet Components - Intangible Assets, Net (Details) - Developed technology - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Gross Carrying Amount	$ 1,696	$ 1,200
Accumulated Amortization	972	573
Net Book Value	$ 724	$ 627

Balance Sheet Components - Amor

Balance Sheet Components - Amortization of Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Amortization of intangible assets	$ 399	$ 385	$ 188

Balance Sheet Components - Othe

Balance Sheet Components - Other Assets, Non-Current (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Operating Lease, Right-of-Use Asset, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Other assets
Operating lease ROU assets	$ 16,891
Notes receivable	750	$ 0
Deposits and other	772	937
Other assets	$ 18,413	$ 937

Balance Sheet Components - Accr

Balance Sheet Components - Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Accrued payroll expenses	$ 13,550	$ 11,877
Accrued manufacturing costs	3,925	8,003
Accrued transaction costs	5,000	25,057
Accrued professional and consulting fees	3,411	965
Accrued warranty costs	1,934	2,204
Accrued taxes	$ 1,017	1,074
Operating Lease, Liability, Current, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Accrued expense and other current liabilities
Lease liabilities	$ 2,623
Legal proceedings accrual	825	75
Other	3,366	1,094
Accrued expense and other current liabilities	$ 35,651	$ 50,349

Balance Sheet Components - Long

Balance Sheet Components - Long-Term Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
PPP loan	$ 0	$ 10,000
Contract liabilities, long-term	$ 12,740	14,732
Operating Lease, Liability, Noncurrent, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Other long-term liabilities
Lease liabilities, long-term	$ 15,210
Other	661	1,195
Other long-term liabilities	$ 28,611	$ 25,927

Leases - Narrative (Details)

Leases - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Leases - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
Lease cost	$ 4.3	$ 4.4	$ 4.3
Lease not yet commenced	$ 1.2

Leases - Other Information Rela

Leases - Other Information Related to Leases (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
Cash paid for operating leases included in operating cash flows	$ 4,263	$ 0	$ 0
ROU assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities	$ 498	$ 0	$ 0
Operating Lease, Right-of-Use Asset, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Other assets
Operating lease ROU assets	$ 16,891
Operating Lease, Liability, Current, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Accrued expense and other current liabilities
Other current liabilities	$ 2,623
Operating Lease, Liability, Noncurrent, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible List]	Other long-term liabilities
Other long-term liabilities	$ 15,210
Total lease liabilities	$ 17,833
Weighted average remaining lease term (years)	5 years 10 months 28 days
Weighted average discount rate	6.37%

Leases - Maturities of Lease Li

Leases - Maturities of Lease Liabilities (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)
Finance Leases
2022	$ 14
2023	0
2024	0
2025	0
Finance Lease, Liability, to be Paid, Year Five	0
Thereafter	0
Total lease payments	14
Less amount representing interest	$ 0
Finance Lease, Liability, Statement of Financial Position [Extensible Enumeration]	Accrued expense and other current liabilities
Present value of lease liabilities	$ 14
Operating Leases
2022	3,585
2023	3,398
2024	3,459
2025	3,563
2026000	3,670
Thereafter	3,780
Total lease payments	21,455
Less amount representing interest	(3,622)
Total lease liabilities	$ 17,833

Mapper Acquisition - Narrative

Mapper Acquisition - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2020	Jul. 03, 2019	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash paid to acquire business			$ 0	$ 0	$ 2,473
Transaction cost	$ 29,100			$ 29,100
Mapper
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash paid to acquire business		$ 2,500
Transaction cost		$ 200
Mapper \| Developed technology
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated useful life		3 years

Mapper Acquisition - Purchase P

Mapper Acquisition - Purchase Price Allocation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Jul. 03, 2019
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Goodwill	$ 1,189	$ 1,189
Mapper
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Developed technology			$ 1,140
Property and equipment			144
Goodwill			1,189
Total purchase price			$ 2,473

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_3

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Composition of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity	$ 299,263	$ 340,823	$ 76,246	$ 93,615
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity	(412)	(230)
Foreign currency translation loss
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity	(184)	(170)
Unrealized loss on investments
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity	$ (228)	$ (60)

Credit Facilities and Notes P_2

Credit Facilities and Notes Payable (Details) - USD ($)	Apr. 08, 2020	Jan. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Loan proceeds received			$ 0	$ 10,000,000	$ 0
Gain on forgiveness of debt			10,124,000	$ 0	$ 0
PPP Loans
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Loan proceeds received	$ 10,000,000
Gain on forgiveness of debt			10,100,000
Line of Credit \| 2020 Revolving Line
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Outstanding borrowings under facility			$ 0
Line of Credit \| Revolving Credit Facility \| 2020 Revolving Line
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		$ 25,000,000
Option to increase the maximum borrowing capacity, additional amount		$ 15,000,000
Unused revolving line facility fee percentage		0.0015%
Line of Credit \| Revolving Credit Facility \| 2020 Revolving Line \| Prime Rate
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Applicable margin on variable rate		0.015%
Line of Credit \| Revolving Credit Facility \| 2020 Revolving Line \| SOFR
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Applicable margin on variable rate		0.025%
Line of Credit \| Letter of Credit \| 2020 Revolving Line
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		$ 5,000,000

Stockholders_ Equity - Narrativ

Stockholders’ Equity - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2020	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Oct. 19, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)		2,250,000,000	2,250,000,000
Common stock, par value (in USD per share)	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Preferred stock, shares authorized (in shares)		25,000,000	25,000,000
Preferred stock, par value (in USD per share)		$ 0.0001	$ 0.0001
Preferred stock, shares issued (in shares)		0	0
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (in shares)		0	0
Warrants outstanding (in shares)	24,876,512	5,973,870	15,277,974
Stockholders' equity		$ 299,263	$ 340,823		$ 76,246	$ 93,615
Prior Year Adjustment of Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity			0
Accumulated Deficit
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity		(526,333)	(315,682)		(164,016)	(96,790)
Accumulated Deficit \| Prior Year Adjustment of Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity		1,600	1,585
Additional Paid in Capital
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity		825,988	656,717		$ 240,464	$ 190,540
Additional Paid in Capital \| Prior Year Adjustment of Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stockholders' equity		$ (1,600)	$ (1,585)
Public Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Number of shares available per warrant (in shares)	0.75
Warrant exercise price (in USD per share)	$ 11.50			$ 11.50
Period after the Business Combination after which the public warrants become exercisable	30 days
Warrant expiration period	5 years
Redemption price (in dollars per share)		$ 0.01
Stock price trigger (in USD per share)	$ 18
Threshold trading days	20 days
Threshold trading day window	30 days
Days prior to notice of redemption	3 days
Shares registered that may be issued upon exercise of warrants (in shares)				18,657,384
Working Capital Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Warrant exercise price (in USD per share)				$ 11.50
Shares registered that may be issued upon exercise of warrants (in shares)				375,000

Stockholders_ Equity - Summary

Stockholders’ Equity - Summary of Common Stock Outstanding (Details) - shares	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	197,346,675	175,912,194
Converted pre-combination Velodyne common stock outstanding
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	82,024,874	101,849,247
Converted pre-combination Velodyne preferred stock outstanding
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	24,772,759	24,772,759
Graf Founder shares
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	157,800	2,575,000
Other stockholders
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	90,391,242	46,715,188

Stockholders_ Equity - Summar_2

Stockholders’ Equity - Summary of Common Stock Issuances Related to the Warrant Exercises (Details) - shares	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Sep. 29, 2020
Equity [Abstract]
Warrants outstanding upon Closing (in shares)	24,876,512	24,876,512
Warrants exercised to date (in shares)	18,902,642	9,598,538
Warrants outstanding (in shares)	5,973,870	15,277,974	24,876,512
Aggregated common shares issuable upon exercise of warrants (in shares)	18,657,384	18,657,384
Common shares issued upon exercise of warrants (in shares)	14,176,959	7,198,898
Remaining common shares issued upon exercise of warrants (in shares)	4,480,425	11,458,486

Stock-Based Compensation - Narr

Stock-Based Compensation - Narrative (Details)	Oct. 30, 2020USD ($)employee$ / sharesshares	Sep. 29, 2020shares	Mar. 31, 2021shares	Sep. 30, 2021USD ($)shares	Jun. 30, 2021USD ($)	May 18, 2021USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)purchasePeriodshares	Dec. 31, 2020USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense \| $							$ 87,103,000	$ 91,500,000	$ 135,000
Accelerated vesting expense \| $				$ 10,800,000
Employee Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares issued under ESPP (in shares)							220,382
Purchase price of common stock percentage							85.00%
Maximum withholding percentage of compensation							15.00%
Maximum number of shares and employee can purchase in an offering period (in shares)							3,000
Maximum value of shares an employee can purchase in a calendar year \| $							$ 25,000
Number of purchase periods \| purchasePeriod							2
Purchase period duration							6 months
Unrecognized compensation cost related to awards \| $							$ 1,200,000
Weighted-average recognition period for unrecognized compensation cost related to stock options							7 months 6 days
Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Accelerated vesting of shares (in shares)				275,419
RSA
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of awards applicable to liquidity event vesting condition (in shares)	4,200,000
Stock-based compensation expense \| $					$ 45,100,000	$ 0
Fair value of re-measured awards (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 10.78
Unrecognized compensation cost related to awards \| $							$ 1,400,000
Weighted-average recognition period for unrecognized compensation cost related to stock options							3 years 9 months 29 days
RSU
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of awards applicable to liquidity event vesting condition (in shares)	11,800,000
Number of employees holding shares applicable to liquidity event vesting condition \| employee	330
Fair value of re-measured awards (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 12.23
Incremental stock-based compensation expense \| $	$ 77,500,000
Accelerated vesting of shares (in shares)				442,209
Unrecognized compensation cost related to awards \| $							$ 46,500,000
Weighted-average recognition period for unrecognized compensation cost related to stock options							2 years 9 months 21 days
PRSU
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Accelerated vesting of shares (in shares)				330,504
2020 Equity Plan
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares reserved for issuance (in shares)		27,733,888					36,738,678
Percent increase in shares that may be issued		5.00%
Increase in the number of shares that may be issued (in shares)		10,000,000
Shares available for issuance (in shares)							17,806,628
2020 Equity Plan \| RSU \| Vesting Period 1
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage							25.00%
Vesting period							1 year
2020 Equity Plan \| RSU \| Vesting Period 2
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period							3 years
2020 ESPP
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares reserved for issuance (in shares)		3,492,097
2020 ESPP \| Employee Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares reserved for issuance (in shares)							5,072,673
Percent increase in shares that may be issued		1.00%
Increase in the number of shares that may be issued (in shares)		2,500,000
Period over which increase in shares that may be issued occurs		20 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| PSUs
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares reserved for issuance (in shares)			7,635,000
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expiration period			10 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| Options \| Vesting Period 1
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage			25.00%
Vesting period			1 year
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| Options \| Vesting Period 2
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period			3 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSA
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expiration period							7 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSA \| Vesting Period 1
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage			25.00%
Vesting period			1 year
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSA \| Vesting Period 2
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period			3 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSU
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expiration period							7 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSU \| Vesting Period 1
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage			25.00%
Vesting period			1 year
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| RSU \| Vesting Period 2
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period			3 years
2020 Phantom Stock Incentive Plan \| PRSU
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period			3 years

Stock-Based Compensation - Summ

Stock-Based Compensation - Summary of Stock Option Activity under Equity Plans (Details) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)$ / sharesshares
Shares
Options outstanding (in shares) \| shares	597,354
Exercised (in shares) \| shares	(440,673)
Expired (in shares) \| shares	(146,890)
Options outstanding (in shares) \| shares	9,791
Options exercisable (in shares) \| shares	9,791
Options vested and expected to vest (in shares) \| shares	9,791
Weighted Average Exercise Price
Options outstanding (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 5.86
Exercised (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	5.74
Expired (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	6.15
Options outstanding (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	7.04
Options exercisable (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	7.04
Options vested and expected to vest (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 7.04
Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life
Options outstanding	2 years 5 months 8 days
Options exercisable	2 years 5 months 8 days
Options vested and expected to vest	2 years 5 months 8 days
Aggregate Intrinsic Value
Options outstanding \| $	$ 0
Options exercisable \| $	0
Options vested and expected to vest \| $	$ 0

Stock-Based Compensation - Su_2

Stock-Based Compensation - Summary of RSU and RSA Activity under Equity Plans (Details) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
RSA
Shares
Outstanding (in shares)	4,183,624
Granted (in shares)	211,298
Released (in shares)	(4,183,624)
Outstanding (in shares)	211,298	4,183,624
Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value per Share
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 10.78
Granted (in USD per share)	6.63
Released (in USD per share)	10.78
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 6.63	$ 10.78
RSU
Shares
Outstanding (in shares)	11,983,636
Granted (in shares)	4,253,681
Released (in shares)	(9,403,574)
Forfeited (in shares)	(1,706,847)
Outstanding (in shares)	5,126,896	11,983,636
Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value per Share
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 12.43
Granted (in USD per share)	9.86
Released (in USD per share)	12.44
Forfeited (in USD per share)	11.71
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 10.51	$ 12.43
PRSU
Shares
Outstanding (in shares)	1,101,683
Granted (in shares)	9,141
Forfeited (in shares)	(780,319)
Outstanding (in shares)	330,505	1,101,683
Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value per Share
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 6.72
Granted (in USD per share)	1.97	$ 6.72
Forfeited (in USD per share)	6.66
Outstanding (in USD per share)	$ 6.72	$ 6.72

Stock-Based Compensation - Addi

Stock-Based Compensation - Additional Information Related to Awards (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Intrinsic value of options exercised	$ 230	$ 0	$ 0
RSAs
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Fair value of awards released	45,099	0	0
RSUs (non-vested)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Fair value of awards released	$ 104,801	$ 0	$ 0

Stock-Based Compensation - Weig

Stock-Based Compensation - Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value and Assumptions Used as Inputs for Options (Details) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Weighted average grant date fair value of options (in USD per share)		$ 2.10
Stock options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected term, in years		5 years 6 months 18 days
Expected volatility		39.82%
Risk-free interest rate		0.371%
Expected dividend yield		0.00%
Employee Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected term, in years	8 months 23 days
Expected volatility	90.17%
Risk-free interest rate	0.14%
Expected dividend yield	0.00%
Weighted average grant date fair value of ESPP purchase rights (in USD per share)	$ 2.87

Stock-Based Compensation - We_2

Stock-Based Compensation - Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value and Assumptions Used as Inputs for PRSUs (Details) - PRSU - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Granted (in USD per share)	$ 1.97	$ 6.72
Expected term, in years		2 years 2 months 1 day
Expected volatility		49.00%
Risk-free interest rate		0.15%
Expected dividend yield		0.00%

Stock-Based Compensation - Stoc

Stock-Based Compensation - Stock-Based Compensation Expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense	$ 87,103	$ 91,500	$ 135
Cost of revenue
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense	2,050	7,417	0
Research and development
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense	12,787	37,030	97
Sales and marketing
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense	46,259	14,773	0
General and administrative
Share-based Payment Arrangement, Expensed and Capitalized, Amount [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense	$ 26,007	$ 32,280	$ 38

Net Loss Per Share - Narrative

Net Loss Per Share - Narrative (Details) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
Net Loss Per Share - Narrative (Details) - $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Oct. 19, 2020	Sep. 29, 2020
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Warrants exercised (in shares)	18,902,642
Common shares issued upon exercise of warrants (in shares)	14,176,959	7,198,898
Public Warrants
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Number of shares that may be purchased by warrants (in shares)	5,973,870	5,973,870		24,876,512
Warrant exercise price (in USD per share)			$ 11.50	$ 11.50

Net Loss Per Share - Common Sto

Net Loss Per Share - Common Stock Equivalents Excluded From the Computation of Diluted Net Income (Loss) Per Share (Details) - shares shares in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Common stock equivalents excluded from the computation of diluted net income (loss) per share (in shares)	5,102	11,101	13,881
Stock options
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Common stock equivalents excluded from the computation of diluted net income (loss) per share (in shares)	10	597	157
RSAs
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Common stock equivalents excluded from the computation of diluted net income (loss) per share (in shares)	211	4,184	4,184
RSUs (non-vested)
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Common stock equivalents excluded from the computation of diluted net income (loss) per share (in shares)	4,881	6,320	9,540

Retirement Plan (Details)

Retirement Plan (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Retirement Plan (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Contribution match percentage	25.00%
Vesting percentage	25.00%
Vesting period	4 years
Matching contributions	$ 0.9	$ 0.8	$ 0.9

Restructuring (Details)

Restructuring (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
Restructuring (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]
Restructuring costs incurred	$ 0	$ 984	$ 0

Income Taxes - Income (Loss) Be

Income Taxes - Income (Loss) Before Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Domestic	$ (212,156)	$ (154,290)	$ (68,645)
Foreign	565	342	736
Loss before income taxes	$ (211,591)	$ (153,948)	$ (67,909)

Income Taxes - Provision for (B

Income Taxes - Provision for (Benefit from) Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current:
Federal	$ 584	$ (4,124)	$ 958
State	(70)	(20)	(130)
Foreign	128	56	430
Total Current	642	(4,088)	1,258
Deferred:
Federal	3	3	(1,942)
State	0	1	1
Total Deferred	3	4	(1,941)
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes	$ 645	$ (4,084)	$ (683)

Income Taxes - Reconciliation o

Income Taxes - Reconciliation of U.S. Federal Provision at Statutory Rate to the Effective Tax Rate (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
U.S. federal provision at statutory rate	21.00%	21.00%	21.00%
State income taxes, net of federal benefit	0.30%	1.50%	1.30%
Foreign income taxes at rates other than the U.S. rate	0.00%	0.00%	(0.40%)
Tax credits	2.50%	3.00%	6.70%
Withholding taxes	(0.30%)	(1.70%)	(1.50%)
Permanent items	1.00%	(1.40%)	(0.20%)
Uncertain tax benefits	(0.50%)	(0.20%)	(0.20%)
2019 CARES Act impact	0.00%	4.30%	0.00%
Prior year return to provision adjustments	0.60%	(1.70%)	(0.10%)
Change in valuation allowance	(18.20%)	(22.00%)	(25.70%)
Stock-based compensation, net of tax deductions	(6.60%)	0.00%	0.00%
Other	(0.10%)	(0.10%)	0.10%
Effective tax rate	(0.30%)	2.70%	1.00%

Income Taxes - Narrative (Detai

Income Taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
Income Taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	May 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2019
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Tax refund received	$ 7,100
Tax benefit related to the release of a valuation allowance allowed by the CARES Act		$ 6,700
Valuation allowance on net deferred tax assets		75,558	$ 114,256
Tax credits		13,387	20,843
Impact on income tax provision if unrecognized tax benefits were recognized		500	400	$ 1,300
U.S. Federal
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Net operating loss carryforwards		367,300
U.S. Federal \| Research Tax Credit Carryforward
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Tax credits			16,000
State
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Net operating loss carryforwards		$ 107,200
State \| Research Tax Credit Carryforward \| California
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Tax credits			10,000
Foreign
Tax Credit Carryforward [Line Items]
Tax credits			$ 4,200

Income Taxes - Deferred Income

Income Taxes - Deferred Income Tax Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward	$ 82,350	$ 42,698
Tax credits	20,843	13,387
Deferred revenue	3,796	224
Accruals and reserves	3,791	3,449
Inventories	1,712	1,850
Stock-based compensation	1,330	16,179
Intangibles	1,951	94
Lease liabilities	3,879	0
Other	8	23
Total deferred tax assets	119,660	77,904
Deferred tax liabilities:
Depreciation and amortization	(263)	(1,203)
ROU assets	(3,665)	0
Prepaids	(1,486)	(1,149)
Total deferred tax liabilities	(5,414)	(2,352)
Net deferred tax assets before valuation allowance	114,246	75,552
Valuation allowance	(114,256)	(75,558)
Net deferred tax liabilities	$ (10)	$ (6)

Income Taxes - Summary of the A

Income Taxes - Summary of the Aggregate Changes in Unrecognized Tax Benefits (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Excluding Amounts Pertaining to Examined Tax Returns [Roll Forward]
Unrecognized tax benefits as of the beginning of the year	$ 5,785	$ 4,188	$ 2,824
Increases related to prior year tax provisions	226	400	308
Increase related to current year tax provisions	4,226	1,240	1,282
Statute lapse	0	(43)	(226)
Unrecognized tax benefits as of the end of the year	$ 10,237	$ 5,785	$ 4,188

Commitments and Contingencies -

Commitments and Contingencies - Summary of Contractual Obligations and Commitments (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)
Purchase Commitments
2022	$ 50,344
2023	0
2024	0
Total	50,344
Other Contractual Commitments
2022	409
2023	156
2024	26
Total	$ 591

Commitments and Contingencies_2

Commitments and Contingencies - Narrative (Details)	Feb. 17, 2022USD ($)	Aug. 05, 2021USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2017petition	Sep. 30, 2016patent	Dec. 31, 2021USD ($)device	Dec. 16, 2021trade_secret	Sep. 07, 2021device	Dec. 31, 2020USD ($)
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Liabilities for loss contingencies					$ 0			$ 0
Pending Litigation
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Liabilities for loss contingencies					$ 800,000
Minimum
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Remaining commitment period					1 month
Maximum
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Remaining commitment period					1 year
Velodyne vs. David Hall \| Pending Litigation
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of devices with copied materials \| device					71		3
Number of misappropriated trade secrets \| trade_secret						2,740
Velodyne vs. David Hall \| Pending Litigation \| Subsequent Event
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Amount awarded from other party	$ 5,000
Quanergy Litigation
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of patents allegedly infringed \| patent				1
Number of claims filed \| petition			2
Former Employee \| Settled Litigation
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]
Amount awarded to other party		$ 800,000

Commitments and Contingencies_3

Commitments and Contingencies - Product Warranties (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Movement in Standard Product Warranty Accrual [Roll Forward]
Balance as of the beginning of the period	$ 2,204	$ 4,322	$ 3,531
Warranty provision	2,599	4,316	6,531
Consumption	(2,217)	(2,700)	(4,939)
Changes in provision estimates	(652)	(3,734)	(801)
Balance as of the end of the period	$ 1,934	$ 2,204	$ 4,322

Segment, Geographic and Custo_3

Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information - Narrative (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021segment
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Number of operating segments	1

Segment, Geographic and Custo_4

Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information - Revenue by Region and Country (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 61,924	$ 95,362	$ 101,398
Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
North America
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 23,313	$ 41,228	$ 49,634
North America \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	38.00%	43.00%	49.00%
Asia Pacific
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 25,977	$ 39,310	$ 28,791
Asia Pacific \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	42.00%	41.00%	28.00%
Europe, Middle East and Africa
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 12,634	$ 14,824	$ 22,973
Europe, Middle East and Africa \| Revenue \| Geographic Concentration Risk
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	20.00%	16.00%	23.00%

Segment, Geographic and Custo_5

Segment, Geographic and Customer Concentration Information - Revenue by Countries and Customers Accounted For More Than 10% (Details) - Revenue - Geographic Concentration Risk	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
U.S.
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	35.00%	34.00%	46.00%
China
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	30.00%	31.00%	11.00%
Sweden
Concentration Risk [Line Items]
Concentration percentage	13.00%

Related Party Transactions - Re

Related Party Transactions - Revenue and Accounts Receivable for Related Parties (Details) - Investor - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Stockholder A
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 347	$ 465	$ (3,514)
Accounts receivable	219	0
Stockholder B
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Revenue		7,008	1,391
Accounts receivable		3,085
Stockholder C
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Revenue	$ 0	$ 764	$ 6,148

Related Party Transactions - Na

Related Party Transactions - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	5 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	May 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, net		$ 14,710	$ 16,805
Lease cost		4,300	4,400	$ 4,300
Affiliated Entity \| Corporate Headquarters Facility Rental
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Lease cost	$ 1,400
Rent expense under operating leases			3,300	$ 3,100
Stockholder D \| Investor
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Accrued purchases		200	6,300
Outstanding purchase commitment		15,700	15,000
Accounts receivable from related parties		100	1,500
Stockholder D \| Affiliated Entity \| Manufacturing Equipment \| Assets Leased to Related Party
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, net		$ 500	$ 400

Subsequent Events (Details)

Subsequent Events (Details) - Subsequent Event - Amazon.com NV Investment Holdings LLC $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	Feb. 04, 2022USD ($)$ / sharesshares
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Warrants outstanding (in shares) \| shares	39,594,032
Warrant vesting payments to be received \| $	$ 200
Warrant exercise price (in USD per share) \| $ / shares	$ 4.18
Warrant term	8 years