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[News] SK hynix Reportedly Exits CIS to Focus on AI amid Weak Demand and Fierce China Competition
Amid the AI-driven HBM boom, SK hynix is exiting its non-core CMOS image sensor (CIS) business, according to ZDNet and Edaily.
The ZDNet report suggests that SK hynix used to supply CMOS sensors for Samsung’s Galaxy Z3 and Chinese smartphones, but struggled to expand due to weak market demand and rising competition from Chinese newcomers.
According to SK hynix, its CIS division, launched in 2007, gained expertise in logic semiconductors beyond memory. However, the company decided to shift resources from CIS to AI memory to strengthen its AI-focused strategy, as per ZDNet.
Another report from fnews notes that SK hynix entered the image sensor market in 2008 by acquiring Silicon File. In 2019, it established a CIS R&D center in Japan and launched the “Black Pearl” sensor brand.
However, while trailing behind Sony and Samsung on the CIS business, SK hynix has been gradually downsizing the division, according to Edaily.
In late 2024, the company placed its CIS development team under the Future Technology Research Institute amid ongoing discussions about the business’s declining profitability, the Edaily report indicates.
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(Photo credit: SK hynix)
