On February 26 and 27, 2025, TrendForce, through its subsidiaries LEDinside and WitsView, hosted the 2025 TrendForce New Display Industry Seminar (DTS 2025) at the JW Marriott Hotel in Shenzhen, China.

The first day of the seminar focused on “Micro and Small-Medium Displays,” featuring industry experts from display panels, LEDs, Micro OLEDs, laptops, automotive displays, and monitors, along with analysts from TrendForce.

They delivered insightful presentations analyzing the future of the micro and small-medium display sector, providing attendees with an in-depth and comprehensive look at display technology and industry trends.

Competitive Landscape of the Panel Industry in 2025
Speaker: Boyce Fan, Deputy Vice President of Research, TrendForce

The TFT-LCD industry has been significantly dominated by Chinese panel manufacturers in terms of both production capacity and shipment scale. In recent years, these manufacturers have improved profitability through capacity control strategies. As the industry enters 2025, five key factors remain crucial:

Short-term capacity control remains important. Future supply-demand balance will be maintained by increasing the average panel size.
Industry consolidation has reached a critical stage. Further mergers and acquisitions will enhance market concentration and improve bargaining power.
Chinese supply chains for core components such as polarizers, backlight modules, and driver ICs are becoming more self-sufficient.
Chinese panel makers are expanding overseas module production to diversify supply chain risks.
Investment in AMOLED, Mini/Micro LED, and semiconductor-related businesses will continue to expand, ensuring a well-rounded industrial layout.

Automotive Displays & Interactive Applications with Automotive-Grade LEDs and PCBA Modules
Speaker: Chui-Ming Wan, Operations Director, Automotive LED Division, APT Electronics Ltd.

Automotive displays are evolving toward larger screens, intelligence, and multi-screen integration. LED backlight solutions remain dominant, with growing demand for high resolution, brightness, wide color gamut, and local dimming.

Exterior automotive displays, such as interactive screens and lighting, are becoming a key element in automotive design, enhancing personalization and user interaction.

APT Electronics Ltd. is investing in Mini LED technology, covering both interior and exterior automotive applications.

In the automotive interior backlight applications, APT offers a variety of solutions, including Mini COB, edge-lit, and direct-lit POB devices and modules. These products feature outstanding advantages such as multi-zone independent control, wide color gamut, and stable and efficient production capacity.

In the automotive exterior direct display interactive applications, APT innovative interactive technologies demonstrate exceptional performance and application potential. Multiple automotive-grade Mini LED devices support various pitch applications ranging from P1.0 to P4.0. By integrating POB or COB technologies with module solutions, APT has developed interactive module products for P0.6 and above, featuring excellent brightness output and high reliability.

Flexible Displays: A Smart Future – Shaping a New Era Together
Speaker: Zheng Cai, Head of Market Insights, BOE

Flexible OLED adoption is increasing, especially with LTPO technology, enhancing high-end smartphone display quality and power efficiency. By 2029, LTPO is expected to dominate the premium smartphone market.

Foldable devices are driving flexible OLED growth. Additionally, applications in automotive, tablets, and laptops are expanding.

BOE has established China’s first flexible display cluster, ranking #2 globally and #1 in China for flexible OLED market share.

BOE introduced the world’s first LTPO mobile OLED panel and developed next-gen LTPO technology with faster refresh rate adjustments and lower power consumption.

BOE operates the world’s first Gen 8.6 AMOLED production line to support the transition from small to medium-size OLED displays.

Mini LED Backlight Technologies and Growth Opportunities
Speaker: Fabo Liu, Head of R&D, Component Business Unit, NationStar

Mini LED backlight technology development is accelerating. NationStar focuses on Mini POB and Mini COB technologies, optimizing wide emission angles, high-voltage designs, and RGB Mini LED solutions.

Key advantages of their Mini LED backlights include:

Wide emission angles, reducing module thickness and cost. High-voltage LED solutions to reduce power consumption and increase brightness. RGB Mini LED backlights enhance color purity and brightness, improving TV picture quality. Mini LED applications in automotive displays are expanding, covering backlight, direct display, and ambient lighting solutions.

AI PCs: The Next Trend in Laptops
Speaker: Sanesha Huang, Analyst, TrendForce

AI-powered PCs are revolutionizing human-computer interactions, moving from cloud-based AI to on-device AI processing.

According to TrendForce’s forecast, the market penetration of AI laptops will reach 21.7% in 2025 and approach 80% by 2029. AI PCs enhance voice recognition, natural language processing, and real-time data analytics, making operations more intelligent and efficient.

AI PCs will drive digital transformation, smart workspaces, and enhanced user convenience.

Micro LED Transparent Displays: Progress and Applications
Speaker: Yongfeng Liu, Product Planning Director, Tianma Micro LED Research Institute

Micro LED excels in brightness, transparency, flexibility, seamless design, and durability.

Liu Yongfeng stated that Tianma focuses on the development of TFT-based Micro LED technology, demonstrating significant advantages in the transparent display sector, including large pixel transmission areas, higher transparency, higher brightness, and seamless splicing, making it highly suitable for automotive display applications.

Specifically, TFT-based Micro LED transparent displays can be applied to side windows, HUDs, instrument clusters, and central control panels, meeting the high-performance requirements and low cost sensitivity of high-end automotive displays. However, the industrialization of this technology faces several challenges, such as optimizing design to achieve high transparency at high PPI, reducing reflectivity while maintaining transparency, expanding end-user application scenarios, increasing market acceptance, and collaborating across the industry chain to lower Micro LED costs while enhancing image quality and display performance.

To address these challenges, Tianma Microelectronics has been actively expanding its industry presence. At the end of 2024, Tianma successfully completed the full-process integration of its Micro LED production line in Xiamen, establishing an advanced manufacturing process that incorporates HME, LOR, LPB, and other core technologies.

In terms of technology development, Tianma is focusing on five core processes, four major backplane technologies, and four display solutions to enhance product competitiveness. Regarding product strategy, the company is concentrating on automotive displays and splicing applications, achieving significant breakthroughs in Micro LED technology, such as full-laser mass transfer and bezel-free splicing technology.

From Panels to Smart Cockpits: Exploring the Automotive Display Market
Iris Hu, Research Manager, TrendForce

Global vehicle demand is gradually reaching a plateau. While growth momentum in mature markets is slowing down, factors such as China’s trade-in subsidies for old vehicles, economic growth in emerging countries, and urbanization are driving production volume expansion this year. As the trend of increasing in-vehicle display adoption continues, more panel manufacturers are entering the automotive display supply chain.

Last year, TCL CSOT, HKC, and Tianma expanded their automotive display production capacity, and AUO’s acquisition of BHTC further strengthened its automotive display business. As a result, automotive panel shipments grew by nearly 10%.

At CES 2025, the top three automotive panel manufacturers—BOE, Tianma, and AUO—showcased next-generation smart cockpit displays featuring stretchable OLED, Mini LED, and Micro LED technologies.

These advancements not only enhance the in-vehicle experience but also increase panel usage, further driving automotive display demand, which is expected to grow by 6.2% this year, particularly in rear-seat entertainment displays, co-driver screens, and digital rearview mirrors.

Mini LED Display Technology Trends and Outlook
Kun Lu, Head of MLED Backlight Device Development, BOE

The Mini LED display market is experiencing strong growth. In 2024, Mini LED display shipments in China surged significantly compared to 2023. BOE’s MLED business performed particularly well, with shipments reaching 140K units.

According to Kun Lu, displays must meet six key criteria (5P1H): Picture – Superior image quality, Panel as System/Service – Enhanced functionality, Pilot of Fashion – Innovative and stylish design, Power – Lower power consumption, Price – Cost-effectiveness, Health – Eye-friendly features.

Mini LED backlight technology effectively meets these demands. Better grayscale and color performance: Mini LED provides superior color accuracy and detectable low grayscale levels, outperforming traditional solutions.

Faster response times: Optimized backlight algorithms reduce motion blur, enhancing clarity for fast-moving content.

Higher ambient contrast: Even in bright environments, Mini LED displays maintain clear visibility while reducing power consumption by approximately 30%, making them more energy-efficient.

BOE is advancing its MLED technology in three key areas:

1. Halo optimization
2. Uniform light distribution technology
3. Integrated driver solutions

Additionally, BOE has established a comprehensive MLED ecosystem, spanning VR, notebooks, TVs, monitors, and automotive displays, with full-size and full-technology compatibility to cater to diverse market needs.

Exploring Micro LED Automotive Applications
Xiangwei Xie, Deputy General Manager, ExtremelyPQ

In the era of smart vehicles, displays have become the core of in-car interaction. Micro LED is ideal for dashboards, center consoles, and in-car entertainment displays, offering higher brightness and transparency compared to LCD and OLED. Despite high production costs, Micro LED can capitalize on its unique advantages to find market breakthroughs.

ExtremelyPQ, backed by TCL CSOT and Sanan Optoelectronics, is accelerating the industrialization of Micro LED automotive displays. The company has successfully developed key Micro LED manufacturing processes, including substrate peeling, laser transfer, laser bonding, inspection and repair.

Furthermore, ExtremelyPQ has completed a fully integrated pilot production line and is now capable of small-batch trial production.

Although Micro LED holds immense potential in automotive applications, technological maturity and cost challenges remain barriers to large-scale adoption.

The Evolving LCD Monitor Market in a Diverse Specification Landscape
Jimmy Yang, Analyst, TrendForce

In Q1 2025, LCD monitor panel demand from brands remains relatively weak, while panel manufacturers are struggling with supply constraints. As a result, quarterly growth has been subdued, with the market outlook dependent on brand procurement strategies in the coming months.

New production capacity is gradually being introduced into the monitor panel supply chain, which could impact less-profitable panel makers. However, current supply tightness means that monitor panel prices may rise slightly before the end of Q1 2025.

Additionally, new production capacity is influencing technological advancements, including: The continued expansion of IPS panel production; A shift toward high-end gaming monitors to improve profitability; The emerging OLED monitor market, which remains in its early stages but is expected to grow as both panel manufacturers and brands actively invest in development.

Innovative Mini LED Direct Display and Backlight Technologies and Solutions
Hao Lei, R&D Director, Hongli Display

The growing demand for LED displays, TVs, VR headsets, and automotive displays is driving the increasing adoption of Mini LED backlight and direct display applications. Facing the rapidly expanding Mini LED market, Hongli Display has made comprehensive preparations to provide high-quality Mini LED backlight and direct display solutions for downstream applications.

In the field of Mini LED backlight technology, Hongli Display has demonstrated strong technical expertise and innovation capabilities. The company has introduced COB (Chip on Board) and POB (Package on Board) technology solutions, covering a full-size range from VR to TVs, meeting the dual demands of display performance and cost efficiency across different application scenarios. Hongli Display’s Mini LED backlight products feature high partition control, high contrast, and high brightness, further improving display quality and reliability through optimized packaging technology and microstructure design.

For small and medium-sized displays, Hongli Display’s COB microstructure technology optimizes chip layout and packaging materials, significantly reducing optical distance (OD) to achieve thinner module designs with enhanced display performance. For medium and large-sized displays, the company has introduced various encapsulation technologies, utilizing concave lens adhesive design and diffusing particles to enhance light mixing, improve display uniformity, and deliver a better visual experience.

In the field of Mini LED direct displays, Hongli Display has extensive equipment and capabilities, providing R&D and quality control testing, reliability experiments, and failure analysis to ensure product quality. The company has launched various COB products, including the “Hongping” and “Hongyi” series, featuring ultra-thin designs, high contrast, and deep black effects, as well as the latest semi-outdoor and outdoor COB solutions to meet the evolving demands of different display sectors.

The AI Era: Human-Machine Interaction Transformation and Challenges in Micro Display Technology
Yi He, Marketing Director, SeeYA Technology

With the advent of spatial computing and AIGC (AI-Generated Content), the seamless integration of digital content and the physical world has become a core characteristic of next-generation display technology. While smartphones currently fulfill most display needs, future human-computer interaction will rely more heavily on AR, VR, and MR extended reality (XR) devices.

According to Yi He, the growing demand for XR devices is driving continuous exploration and advancements in micro display technology. For optical solutions, non-see-through display optics have evolved into pancake lenses, multi-lens systems, and Fresnel lenses, while see-through display optics have developed into planar reflection, curved reflection, geometric optics, and diffractive optics. These advancements aim to balance micro display performance, computational efficiency, and power consumption.

Additionally, the display screen is a key component of micro display technology, with factors such as FOV (Field of View), brightness, color gamut, and resolution determining the final near-eye display performance.

SeeYA Technology is currently focusing on Micro OLED technology to enhance micro display performance and meet the demands of XR devices. The company’s core technologies include Tandem device structures, narrow bezel designs, high PPI (Pixels Per Inch), Micro-cavity designs, Micro LENS fabrication, and Pixel Driver Circuits, forming the foundation for high-quality Micro OLED micro displays.

On the production side, SeeYA Technology operates a 12-inch evaporation production line, with a monthly output capacity of 9,000 wafers, exceeding 1 million units per month. In the future, the production line can expand to three 12-inch evaporation lines, increasing output to 27,000 wafers per month.

SeeYA offers Micro OLED displays ranging from 0.32 inches to 1.3 inches and provides various optical solutions, including EVF (Electronic Viewfinders), Birdbath optics, lens groups, and pancake optics, fully addressing the growing demand for micro display technologies.

Near-Eye Display Market Trends
Wen Wan, Analyst, TrendForce

The core of near-eye display devices lies in creating an immersive experience through optical modules and display technology. VR/MR devices primarily utilize VST (Video See-Through) technology, capturing the real world through sensors and overlaying virtual information, while AR devices emphasize transparency, integrating virtual images with reality through BB (Birdbath optics), waveguides, and other optical components. Currently, the supply chain for optical and display modules is rapidly expanding, with Fresnel lenses, pancake optics, LCoS, and OLEDoS emerging as key technologies for various applications.

Wen Wan emphasized that critical hardware components for near-eye display devices include optical modules, display modules, computing chips, sensors, and battery modules. Among them, optical modules are trending toward miniaturization, with waveguide technology gaining popularity due to its lightweight design and high transparency, making it an essential component in AR devices. Notably, China’s SiC wafer manufacturers are entering the waveguide market, potentially accelerating the upgrading of AR device specifications.

From a market trend perspective, VR/MR devices are striving for higher resolution and thinner designs, but they also face cost and ecosystem challenges. According to TrendForce’s forecast, despite global VR/MR shipments reaching 7.2 million units in 2024, OLEDoS technology maturity and supply chain improvements are expected to drive shipments up to 40 million units by 2030, with OLEDoS adoption reaching 27%.

AR devices are leveraging AI technologies to enable voice control, hand gestures, and eye-tracking for more intuitive interactions. TrendForce predicts that AR device shipments will reach 25.5 million units by 2030, with LEDoS technology, offering high brightness and miniaturization, playing a crucial role in the AR market.

TrendForce 2024 Near-Eye Display Market Trend and Technology Analysis
Release Date:2024 / 07 / 31
Languages:Traditional Chinese / English
Format:PDF
Page:164