Beobachtungen auf der Lichtmesse 2025: Die beschleunigte Fusion von "Optoelektronik + Halbleiter", und auch Drohnen mischen sich ein.

In the future, the core competitiveness of the industry will no longer be limited to the breakthrough of a single technology, but to the in - depth integration of "technological innovation" and "application scenarios".

With the increasing complexity of the international geopolitical situation, the semiconductor industry has gradually developed into a strategic emerging industry - from the supply of raw materials and equipment in the upstream of the semiconductor industry, through the manufacturing of semiconductor products in the mid - stream to the diverse applications in the downstream. The entire industrial chain has entered a phase of accelerated technological iteration in recent years.

Driven by the continuous development in areas such as 5G communication, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and autonomous driving, the integration of Optoelectronic Technology and the semiconductor industrial chain has been continuously deepened, and its key role has emerged in more and more application scenarios.

Precisely against this industrial background, the recently concluded 26th China International Optoelectronic Exposition (hereinafter referred to as the "Optoelectronic Expo") was an important window to observe the industry development.

During the exhibition, I focused particularly on the exhibitor companies in the semiconductor and consumer electronics fields. Compared with last year, I clearly felt that the exhibitor companies presented more physical products this year, and the technological approaches were also more diverse.

As an influential comprehensive exhibition for the optoelectronic industry in China, this Optoelectronic Expo has brought together more than 3,800 companies from around the world, focusing on eight leading areas such as information communication, precision optics, camera technology and applications, laser manufacturing, infrared and ultraviolet technology, intelligent sensors, new display technologies, and AR/VR.

From the technological competition for 1.6T opto - modules to the immersive experience in AR/VR optics, from the microscopic world of precision optics to the wide application of infrared sensors - this exhibition not only comprehensively presented the latest achievements of the optoelectronic industry but also clearly outlined the future development trend of the industry.

The integration of "Optoelectronics + Semiconductor" accelerates the construction of industrial ecosystems

Compared with last year's Optoelectronic Expo, the presentation concept in the field of optical communication has changed significantly. Last year, most companies emphasized the keyword "AI" in their promotional materials - especially for products such as opto - modules and silicon photonics chips, which benefited from the technological upgrading of optical communication driven by the AI wave. Therefore, the product presentations naturally revolved around AI.

This year, leading companies in the field of optical communication have put more energy into the physical presentation of their products. Technological products such as CPO (Co - Packaged Optics) solutions and 1.6T opto - modules were placed in prominent positions. Even the 800G opto - modules, which took the "C - position" last year, are now essentially mass - produced products that can respond to the market demand for large - scale deliveries at any time.

Behind this change lies an industry transformation driven by the two tracks of data centers and AI: The competition in the opto - module industry is becoming increasingly fierce, and the market focus has shifted from "technological concepts" to "practical applications". AI is no longer an optional promotional note but the core ability of products. This also places higher requirements on the companies' ability to develop the industrial ecosystems of "technology - production - application".

What is even more remarkable is that the integration of "Optoelectronics + Semiconductor" is not limited to the field of optical communication but runs through all the halls of this Optoelectronic Expo.

Take the presentation of AR glasses as an example. The companies not only display the whole products but also disassemble the core components. For example, the "Light Engine", whose core function is the conversion of optoelectronic signals and image projection. Compared with the components of traditional optical communication modules, the Light Engine is more integrated and requires higher precision in design and assembly.

With the increasing spread of these silicon photonics integration chips in the downstream fields, the related fields such as semiconductor materials and semiconductor equipment are also connected. This trend brings new impetus to the Chinese semiconductor industry.

The most direct evidence for this is that compared with last year's Optoelectronic Expo, the proportion of Chinese semiconductor equipment at the exhibition is significantly higher. This is the result of the improvement of China's equipment supply capacity, driven by the completion of the silicon photonics integration industrial chain.

More diverse application scenarios: Drones are also involved

In the field of consumer electronics, the AR/VR industry is developing more slowly than established end - devices such as mobile phones, PCs, and tablets. The problem of the lack of an application ecosystem is still obvious at this Optoelectronic Expo: The number of exhibitor companies in the AR/VR field has decreased rather than increased compared with last year. Most companies still focus on the further development and upgrading of optical display systems such as high frame rates and high resolutions, and the number of presented physical products is relatively limited.

But there are also positive changes: Although the total number of exhibitor companies has decreased, most companies have significantly increased the proportion of presented AR glasses products.

With the entry of large companies such as Xiaomi and Alibaba into the AR glasses market, the attractiveness of this segment has been continuously increasing. Especially with the support of AI technology, the smart glasses, which have lost a lot of weight, have overcome the portability threshold and found the key to opening the application side. More importantly, there is already an established supply - chain system at the hardware level, which lays the foundation for subsequent mass application.

For the AR/VR industry, this change is an adjustment of the previous development path: In the past, due to the lack of an application ecosystem, companies first focused on improving the optical display systems and relied on the B2B market (e.g., industry, medicine, etc.) to improve the market performance. With the continuous expansion of downstream application scenarios, these established display technologies are no longer limited to AR glasses but are also used in helmet display systems, night - vision devices, and other fields. Many such products with cross - applications were also presented at this Optoelectronic Expo.

In fact, the breakthrough of optoelectronic technology on the application side is not limited to AR glasses.

At this Optoelectronic Expo, new products such as drones, vehicle - mounted optical communication devices, endoscopy imaging devices, laser medical devices, prototypes of humanoid robots, and optical components related to quantum computers were also brought into the spotlight.

Through the presentation in application scenarios, the barriers between "technological research and development" and "practical applications" were broken down, and an industry aggregation effect of "1 + 1 > 2" was created.

New trends in the optoelectronic industry - Integration of technology and application scenarios

In addition to the two fields of semiconductors and consumer electronics, this Optoelectronic Expo has also brought together many other categories such as intelligent cars, security cameras, laser technology, infrared technology, precision optics, camera technology, etc. The scale and wide range of the covered fields hint at the diversity of the optoelectronic industry.

In the "Camera Technology Hall", companies comprehensively presented optical lenses, camera modules, and related products: From the high - resolution upgrade of mobile phone cameras to the precise imaging of industrial cameras, from the optimization of the wide dynamic range of security surveillance cameras to the improvement of the microscopic detection ability of medical devices. Camera technology meets the diverse requirements of different industries through continuous innovation.

In themed halls such as the "Precision Optics Exhibition and Processing Hall" and the "Optical Vacuum Coating Hall", companies showed the "unsung heroes" of the optoelectronic industry: Optical materials, optical components, and processing equipment. These seemingly ordinary basic components are the core support for the performance of all optoelectronic products. From sapphire substrates to silicon carbide wafers, from precision lenses to vacuum coating equipment - every technological breakthrough in each step directly determines the competitiveness of end - products, which also underlines the depth and strength of the optoelectronic industrial chain.

Even in relatively traditional fields such as laser technology and infrared technology, new changes have been shown at this exhibition: AI technology begins to be deeply integrated into fields such as laser cutting and infrared detection, and improves the precision and efficiency of devices through algorithm optimization, which helps the industry accelerate the process of intelligent upgrading.

If we look at the entire Optoelectronic Expo, we can recognize the rapid development of the Chinese optoelectronic industry: From "scale growth" to "quality improvement", from "technological follow - up" to "original innovation".