Panel giants AUO and Innolux are aggressively targeting the Micro LED market. AUO is combining AI applications with its focus on TVs, IT, and automotive sectors, and has secured orders from major manufacturers such as Samsung and Sony Mobility. Innolux, on the other hand, has established Innolux Display Technology Co., Ltd. to fully accelerate its development in automotive and large-screen TV applications.
Micro LED, with its high-performance advantages such as high-definition transparency, seamless splicing and large-scale application, and flexibility, has become the preferred choice for integrating AI functions and providing overall solutions from high-end displays to smart mobile, retail, medical, entertainment, education and AI optical communication, attracting the two major panel manufacturers to compete fiercely.
AUO General Manager Ko Fu-jen stated that AUO's focus in display technology is not only on quantity, but also on its integration with AI applications. He emphasized that 2024 is a year in which AUO's Micro LED technology will move from development to marketization and mass production, from the R&D line to the completion of the 4.5-generation mass production line at the Longtan plant.
Ko Fu-jen revealed that AU Optronics (AUO) has already contacted customers in the TV, IT, and automotive industries to place orders for Micro LED. Among them, the order from Japanese company Sony Mobility is a key product for AUO's 4.5 generation line. The new car planned to introduce AUO Micro LED products in the second half of 2026 will be launched in the United States.
Ko Fu-Jen believes that mobile applications will be the most promising pioneers for Micro LED. The Smart Cockpit 2025, jointly developed by AU Optronics and BHTC, expands human-machine interaction as a pioneer in smart cockpits, driving a smarter and more intuitive driving experience, demonstrating AU Optronics' leading strength in Micro LED technology innovation.
In addition, AUO has already delivered its 114-inch MicroLED TV to Samsung. AUO is optimistic that transparent displays are also a key application. MicroLED is not intended to replace mainstream products, but rather to leverage its characteristics to create new application markets, helping customers achieve higher pricing and simultaneously contributing a higher percentage of future profits than revenue.
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Innolux plans to first manufacture its Micro LED products on its 3.5-generation low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) production line, and then produce them on its 6th generation line in the future. The related technologies have already been implemented in automotive and large-screen TVs, and Innolux is also in talks with customers about mass production plans.
Innolux's color conversion technology is planned for use in large-size display panels and automotive panels. The color conversion Micro LED technology is estimated to be shipped within one to two years; the development time for automotive displays is longer, requiring two to three years.
Innolux Chairman Hung Chin-yang stated that Innolux's AM Micro LED third-generation display technology has obtained nearly 580 patents approved in the United States. Its superior features, including high image quality, seamless splicing, fast response speed, low power consumption, and ultra-low energy saving, can be applied to smart entertainment, such as high-end theaters and museums with 8K retina displays, as well as diverse innovative fields such as smart mobile and smart retail, reshaping the new value of the display technology industry. (Source: Taiwan Economic Daily)
