South Korean display makers, long dominant in the global smartphone OLED market, remain hesitant to commit to mass production of OLED-on-silicon (OLEDoS) displays, an essential component for personal AI platforms such as smart glasses and extended reality (XR) headsets. As Chinese and Japanese rivals aggressively expand capacity and secure customer wins, industry observers warn that South Korea risks losing its foothold in next-generation displays in the AI era.
Apple has reportedly pushed back plans to add new display technologies to the iPhone model expected in 2027, which marks the product line's 20th anniversary. According to ET News, the change affects panel makers that had already lined up equipment upgrades and investment for the upgrade cycle.
Aiming to meet demand for high-speed gaming displays, LG Display (LGD) said it has begun mass production of a 24.5-inch gaming OLED panel with a 720Hz refresh rate. The panel will debut in a new Asus monitor chosen as the official screen for the global esports event PGL CS2 Major Singapore 2026.
Corning, the US glass substrate supplier, will raise prices for its yen-denominated display glass substrate products by 15% or more worldwide starting in the fourth quarter of 2026, according to industry sources. The company confirmed the move amid persistent cost pressure across the electronics supply chain.
Global foldable smartphone panel shipments declined 13% year-over-year in the first half of 2026, with the contraction concentrated in clamshell products, according to Counterpoint Research's Quarterly Foldable Display Shipment and Technology Report.
Samsung Display (SDC) is reportedly preparing to invest about KRW 300 billion in a 12-inch RGB OLED-on-Silicon (OLEDoS) production line, moving the next-generation microdisplay technology closer to mass production as the XR market shifts toward lighter glasses.
China's optical suppliers are playing a growing role in the global smart glasses, VR, and AR supply chain as AI glasses demand accelerates worldwide. Industry sources say more than 80% of smart glasses suppliers are from China, with Chinese vendors covering key areas from camera modules and light waveguides to microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and batteries.
China's top three liquid-crystal display (LCD) panel makers have sent written price-increase notices to customers for the first time, as Taiwan's leading panel makers sell factories and China tightens its grip on the global market. With South Korea and Japan already out of the thin-film-transistor LCD (TFT-LCD) market, China now controls more than 70% of LCD TV and monitor panel share, creating an effective oligopoly.
Suppliers in China's AR glasses supply chain see the approximately 2 billion people worldwide with myopia as a potential market and said shipments are set to double year after year, even as the industry continues to sift winners from losers. At this year's China International Optoelectronic Exposition (CIOE), smart glasses remained a standout theme alongside optical communications.
Samsung Display could emerge as one of the biggest supply-chain beneficiaries of Apple's entry into foldable smartphones, as the Korean panel maker already accounts for about two-thirds of global foldable smartphone panel shipments, with Apple set to become a major new source of demand.
Last week, from September 9 to 11, thousands of vendors gathered for an enormous trade show in the Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen. At the China International Optoelectronic Expo (CIOE), DIGITIMES reporters got a peek into the trends going on within this booming industry.
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