With the advent of Apple's VisionPro, a new craze for the metaverse has been quickly ignited. The microdisplay technology used by Apple has also become the focus of attention and is considered to be a "key" to the metaverse. Two Micro-OLED screens with a resolution of up to 4K are the key to VisionPro's stunning visuals. According to the dismantling of the professional team, in the cost of VisionPro hardware, these two micro-OLED screens account for nearly half.
The core component of VisionPro is MicroOLED (Silicon-based OLED).At present, it is exclusively supplied by Sony, and Sony's annual production capacity is only 500,000 pieces (insufficient production capacity, including self-supplied XR), Seeya Technology and BOE from Hefei, China, are expected to become the second largest supplier of Apple supplement at any time according to the market demand of VisionPro, so as to solve the problem of microOLED production capacity.
MicroOLED technologyIt is a microdisplay technology based on a monocrystalline silicon chip and driven by CMOS to deposit red, green, and blue organic materials on silicon wafers. Different from the traditional AMOLED display technology, it is an OLED display device made with monocrystalline silicon as the driving backplane, and the traditional externally bonded display chip is integrated in the silicon-based backplane by using the mature CMOS processThe pixel size is 1 10 times that of a conventional display device. MicroOLED has a higher pixel density (PPI), which can make the display thinner, shorter, and less power-consuming, especially suitable for AR, VR and other display wearable devices.
Silicon-based OLEDPros:Silicon-based OLED combines semiconductor wafer process and OLED display technology, relying on the mature CMOS process, integrating the driver circuit, pixel array and other circuits on a single chip module, and then carrying out the evaporation and thin-film packaging of organic light-emitting materials, and finally making a micro-display module. Compared with the conventional OLED display technology with glass substrate as the substrate and TFT array as the driving backplane, the pixel size of silicon-based OLED microdisplays can be very small (micron level), and the pixel density can reach more than 5,000ppi. Therefore, at present, the mainstream products of mid-to-high-end VR AR XR at home and abroad all use silicon-based OLED as their display screens. With the development of VR and AR industries, the industry is expected to develop rapidly.
Microoled manufacturers and production capacity:
1) Abroad: Sony is the first to exceed 50% of the microoled products on the market. There is a 12-inch mass production line with a monthly production capacity of 10k. Samsung is in R&D and has not yet mass produced, and LG is still in the device stage with a slower progress.
2) Domestic:BOE(Holding subsidiary:Chuangshi OptoelectronicsAt present, there is an 8-inch R&D line and a 12-inch mass production line. The monthly production capacity of the 12-inch mass production line is 10k, and it is currently in the yield ramp-up stage. SeeYA TechnologyAt present, there is a 12-inch mass production line with a monthly production capacity of about 9K, and there will be two production lines with a monthly production capacity of 18K in September next year. Kunshan Dream Show(A subsidiary of Qingyue Technology Holdings, a listed company).Xitai Technology, Lakeside OptoelectronicsThe construction of an 8-inch R&D line is underway, and there is no mass production. Another military-industrial complexOredandGuozhao OptoelectronicsThere are also silicon-based OLEDs, the information is not available.
1) SeeYA Technology:It has become the leading supplier of micro-OLED displays of well-known brands such as DJI, Xiaomi, and Tribute to the Unknown. As early as November 2019, Hefei SeeYA's silicon-based OLED display screen project was completed and put into operation, which was the world's largest and only R&D and production base focusing on 12-inch wafer silicon-based OLED micro display components. SeeYA Technology's silicon-based OLED micro display, covering from 032 inches to 1A variety of specifications in the 3-inch range, with high definition, high brightness and high color gamut. When applied in products such as headsets, it can vividly and delicately present the display effect equivalent to a large-size TV screen. Not only that, aerial photography enthusiasts can immerse themselves in the first-hand perspective of drones through the application of this technology.
SeeYA Technology has previously reported that it will become a second-tier supplier of microoled (Sony is the first supplier) to evaluate VisionPro. On June 19, 2023, SunicSystem announced that it signed a contract with SeeYA Technology to provide micro OLED evaporation equipment, with an order amount of 25.15 million US dollars. "Sunic's OLED evaporator is normally delivered in 10 months. If we speculate from this, the new production line prepared by SeeYA Technology for Apple will have mass production capacity in April 2024. SeeYA is now mass-producing and selling to domestic customers such as DJI and Huawei, and DJI's goggles and DJI drones have a large number of viewfinders. Next year's SeeYA products may not be for the Apple generation, but may be for the second generation, depending on Apple.
BOEChuangshi Optoelectronics): A manufacturer with very strong comprehensive strength, BOE and Huaxing Optoelectronics are known as the two giants of the panel, and the strength is needless to say. In the first half of 2023, in the field of OLED, the shipment of flexible AMOLED (folding screen mobile phone demand) has increased significantly, and the semi-annual shipment volume has exceeded 50 million, a year-on-year increase of nearly 80%. According to previous disclosures, Yunnan Chuangshi Optoelectronics' 12-inch silicon-based OLED project is expected to reach the scheduled usable state in January 2024.
3) Qingyue Technology:
Main business: PMOLED, e-paper and silicon-based OLED. Since 2019, the company's PMOLED display module shipments have ranked first in the world for four consecutive years, of which shipments in 2022 accounted for 32% of the global total.
After the listing, with the downward trend of the panel cycle and the sluggish consumer electronics, the product competition is fierce, and the performance in 2023 will decline rapidly to a performance loss, and the net operating cash flow will deteriorate a lot (payment collection, gross profit margin will decline).
In 2020, the construction of an 8-inch wafer mass production line for silicon-based OLED microdisplays began, and at present, the production line has fully opened up the whole process process. If you want to supply the screen of VisionPro, you need to choose a wafer process with a larger position, because 12 inches can only cut 50, and 8 inches can only cut more than a dozen, and the cutting economy is not good, plus the yield, the cost is not advantageous. If you want to offer 14 inches or with 1If it is close to 4 inches, the production line must be 12 inches, unless it is for smaller products such as 05 inches can be used for 8 inches.
2023 semi-annual report: 204 R&D people, including 6 doctors, 12 masters, 395 invention patent applications, 119 invention patents, and the proportion of total R&D investment to operating income is 1154%。
Sony has a line with a monthly production capacity of 10K, which corresponds to about 1 million pairs of glasses from Apple. About half of the microoled products on the market today are supplied by Sony, and these products consume 50% of Sony's production capacity. As a result, only half of Sony's production capacity can be supplied to Apple. Apple asked Sony to expand its production capacityHowever, Sony is not very aggressive about expanding production at the moment, Apple needs to find ** companies other than Sony, such as BOE and Seeya. BOE originally planned three production lines in Kunming, but now the latter two lines have been canceled, and there is actually only one production line. SeeYA has already expanded one production line, and whether the second or third line will be expanded depends on the sales of next generation of products, and SeeYA is relatively the fastest on Apple's side.
In addition, the industrial chain OLED evaporation machine (high value) is expected to benefit the most from the explosion of demand. OLED packaging equipment and packaging materials are also expected to benefit.
References:The prospectus updated by Yunnan North Ared Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. in 2020 and its reply to the first and second rounds of inquiry letters can only be used for general reference due to rapid technological progress.
The prospectus of the listing draft of Suzhou Qingyue Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.