Kinko Optical posted record October 2025 revenue of NT$405 million (approx. US$13.16 million), up 95.9% from a year earlier and 10.1% from September, the highest level in nine years. Consolidated revenue for the first ten months climbed 45.1% to NT$2.835 billion, driven by robust demand for thermal imaging and IoT lenses.

China's leading display manufacturer, BOE, is accelerating its deployment of 8.6-generation OLED production. The first phase of investment is nearly complete, and the company is preparing for the second phase of equipment procurement. By speeding up its investment timeline, BOE is positioning itself to catch up with Samsung Display (SDC) and potentially challenge its market dominance in the OLED sector.

End-market performance is expected to reflect improving demand for automotive chips in the second to third quarters of 2026. The optical industry has benefited significantly, with companies including CALIN, Asia Optical (AO), and Canon focusing on automotive lenses.

C3 Labs, headquartered in Sri Lanka, has announced the establishment of a new business unit called Pixel Paper Labs, focusing on the development, design, and manufacturing of e-paper products for both local and international markets.

Hinge and mechanical component manufacturer Syncmold Enterprise posted weak revenue performance in the first three quarters of 2025, mainly due to geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties. However, the company stated that with the gradual results from new products and new customers emerging, it remains cautiously optimistic about future development.

Between 2014 and 2023, Google launched its smart glasses, Google Glass, which was once seen as a technological innovation with strong potential in both the enterprise and consumer markets. However, limited by the hardware and software capabilities of the time, along with its distinctive appearance and limited functionality, the product struggled to gain market acceptance and was eventually discontinued.

Augmented reality (AR) glasses could become the next mainstream computing platform after smartphones. AR glasses are the core hardware of AR technology, but rely heavily on the integration of key components such as display modules, sensors, batteries, and optical lenses. The complex optical design requirements and the need to balance display quality, human visual characteristics, and device miniaturization all contribute to high total production costs. Additionally, if waveguide technology is used, costs may rise even higher.

Leading polarizer BenQ Materials is maintaining a cautious outlook for the display sector in the fourth quarter of 2025 and first half of 2026, due to a sluggish TV market and the impact of the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, according to Chairman Dr. ZC Chen during the company's latest earnings call.

AUO's profits turned to losses in the third quarter of 2025, but the company still maintained profitability for the first three quarters. The second half of the year is expected to be weaker than usual, with the traditional off-season in the fourth quarter, but 2026 has the potential to bring positive developments.

Although Chinese panel manufacturers have recently gained market share, their profitability has been weak due to the high proportion of low-priced products. In contrast, South Korean companies are improving their business structure by focusing on OLED and high-end panel products.

As holiday seasons approach, including China's Singles' Day and Black Friday in Europe and the US, the smartphone panel market has maintained high utilization rates in the fourth quarter of 2025, though price trends have diverged across different panel technologies.

Although the LCD industry supply chain has begun moving from China to Vietnam in the past two years, front-end panel processes remain mainly in China or Taiwan. Sarah Lin, president of Coretronic Corporation, stated that the influx of Chinese component and module suppliers building capacity in Vietnam has created a major test for Vietnam's factory construction speed, human resources, and local culture. After building a new factory in the first half of 2025, Lin believes that Vietnam's manufacturing efficiency is lower than China's.

The third-quarter earnings season for the industry has begun, led by Powertip Technology, followed by Coretronic. The main events are set for October 30, when major names including LG Display (LGD), AUO, Radiant Opto-Electronics, and BenQ Materials will hold their briefings.

Darwin Precisions will remain as a key player in the display industry even amid challenges resulting from tariffs and exchange rates, according to company chairman Kuo-hsin Tsai. The company has worked hard to improve its financials while optimizing product mix, production efficiency, and cost structure, aiming for better performance in 2026.

China's Shenzhen Sapo Photoelectric will invest CNY1.334 billion (US$186 million) to build a new LCD and OLED polarizer production line in Shenzhen, worsening an already oversupplied market. With the global display supply chain increasingly concentrated in China, Taiwanese polarizer makers face intensifying pressure to transform.

China's national subsidy program is nearing its end, and consumer spending momentum has slowed down. During the National Day holidays, TV sales volume and prices both declined. With weakening panel pull-in momentum, the industry is not optimistic about TV sales for the upcoming Singles' Day shopping festival.

LG Display (LGD) is reportedly planning to invest in production line conversion in 2026 for Apple's next-generation iPhone. According to the latest reports from Korean media, LGD began placing orders for related equipment in the fourth quarter and is expected to start installing them in the first quarter of 2026.

Garmin's second quarter 2025 financial report hit a new record, with total revenue reaching US$1.815 billion, up 20% from the same period in 2024. Operating profit grew 38% year-over-year to US$472 million, with an operating margin of 26%, while the overall gross margin remained high at 58.8%. The strong performance highlights the company's solid profitability and technological competitiveness. Among its product lines, fitness and recreation products led with a 41% year-over-year increase, reflecting growing consumer interest in personalized health monitoring and smart sports technology, as well as global demand for wearable devices.

The rapidly growing demand for AI and augmented reality (AR) smart glasses in China has sparked a tenfold increase in sales during the first half of 2025, significantly accelerating the adoption of microLED technology for miniature displays. Industry analysts anticipate 2025 will become a critical year for full-color microLED development, though mature single-chip full-color microLED displays are projected to appear only by 2027.

Memory module manufacturer Apacer Technology has, in recent years, been actively expanding into full-color cholesteric liquid crystal electronic paper (ChLCD ePaper). Recognizing that Japan has a strong demand for sustainable solutions, the company has joined forces with IRIS Optronics for CEATEC 2025 in Japan, showcasing the latest applications that combine low power consumption, reflective display, and outdoor visibility.

The mid-to-large size OLED panel market is set for significant growth in 2025, driven primarily by demand from the monitor and notebook segments. South Korean companies Samsung Display (SDC) and LG Display (LGD), both of which are dominant players in the OLED sector, are expected to see positive revenue impacts from the market expansion.

The global e-paper industry is entering a new growth phase, fueled by rising demand for color displays and the proliferation of consumer and commercial applications. Leading players—Taiwan's E Ink Holdings, the world's largest producer of electronic paper displays, and Netronix, a major manufacturer of e-reader devices—are both projecting strong momentum through 2025 and into 2026.

Coretronic has reported consolidated revenue of about NT$3.461 billion (US$113.4 million) for September 2025, up 4% from August's NT$3.342 billion and 1% from that of the same month in 2024. For the third quarter of 2025, consolidated revenue reached NT$9.948 billion, up 1% sequentially but down 7% year over year. Cumulative revenue for the first three quarters of 2025 totaled NT$28.28 billion, marking a 5% decline compared to the same period in 2024.

Global Lighting Technologies (GLT) has liquidated its Zhongshan factory in Guangdong, China and has plans to start trial production at its new facility in Vietnam facility in the fourth quarter of 2025. GLT chairman Mang-shiang Lee said the company has reduced display segment revenue to below 5% of its overall sales and is expanding into the biomedical sector for stable future growth.

The integration of Micro LED into AI glasses research has entered the competitive landscape as market interest in AI glasses continues to rise. GIS, which in recent years transformed from touch panels into new businesses, is focusing its 2025 capital expenditures on emerging applications like AR/VR. It is joining forces with Micro LED start-up Porotech, combining GIS's optical engine key technologies along with Foxconn's mass production capacity to form upstream-downstream strategic integration. They have reportedly obtained cooperation in development with important US clients, and AI glasses could be released as early as the second half of 2026 to 2027.