LIDAR (lasers) and cameras together: Which is more important?

Recently we've seen a series of startups arise hoping to make robocars with just computer vision, along with radar. That includes recently unstealthed AutoX, the off-again, on again efforts of comma.ai Their optimism is based on the huge progress being made in the use of machine learning, most notably convolutional neural networks, at solving the problems of computer vision. Milestones are dropping quickly in AI and particularly pattern matching and computer vision. There are reasons pushing some teams this way. First of all, the big boys, including Google, already have made tons of progress with LIDAR.