Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
LG Innotek invests in Taiwanese lens company to expand into self-driving, XR
LG Innotek’s mockup of a self-driving car is displayed at the company’s booth during the CES tech trade show in Las Vegas, Jan. 9. Yonhap
By Baek Byung-yeul
LG Innotek invested in Taiwan-based lens manufacturer AOE Optronics to expand the market for optical components for autonomous vehicle cameras and extended reality (XR) devices.
"We decided to invest in AOE not only to enhance our product competitiveness but also to strengthen the competitiveness of our optical solution business," LG Innotek said, adding that the strategy partnership with AOE is to expand into new areas such as self-driving cars and XR.
Through this investment, LG Innotek will be able to secure a stable supply of lenses, a key component of camera modules. AOE, a company with a strength in lenses for vehicle camera modules, has recently been increasing its supply to carmakers in North America.
LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuk-soo, center, speaks with reporters at the company’s booth during the CES tech trade show in Las Vegas, Jan. 10. Yonhap
Both companies plan to optimize product design and manufacturing processes between lenses and camera modules to maximize quality and improve price competitiveness.
"LG Innotek will quickly expand its camera module portfolio to vehicles and XR devices," said Moon Hyun-soo, CEO of the company.
"By creating differentiated value through competitive advantages such as overwhelming technology, cost competitiveness and manufacturing process capabilities, we will become a technology innovation company that makes customers winners."