IDC reports that global handheld smart camera shipments exceeded 5.88 million units in the second quarter of 2026, up 57% year on year, with sales of nearly RMB 15.7 billion, up 50%. DJI and Insta360 together held a 93% share. IDC expects shipments to approach 41 million units by 2030.
The article groups AR optical waveguides into three major categories and five technical routes: geometric, diffractive (including SRG, VHG and PVG) and metasurface. Each relies on different optical principles, performance limits and industrialization timelines, and the author argues that no single solution fits all.
Researchers at TU Wien propose that letting photons change shape as they propagate could enable perfect quantum information transfer between quantum network nodes.
Shanghai Millimeter Starlight Optics, a specialized and innovative enterprise focused on micro-optical components, held a kickoff meeting for its MES and ERP upgrade project on September 15, partnering with Shuyi Gonglian and Kundi to connect data across the entire production chain.
Lianchuang Electronics acknowledged on September 17 that short-term funding pressure had prevented it from paying some employees' July wages on time. Its subsidiaries added RMB 46.67 million in overdue debt, bringing the cumulative total to RMB 360 million, or 33.92% of its most recent audited net assets. The article argues that expansion, weak profitability and softening demand have jointly weighed on its automotive optics business.
Hangzhou Bangqizhou Technology, an incubated company of the Hangzhou Institute of Optics and Mechanics, has been named a 2025 Silver-Level Outstanding Supplier by North Night Vision Technology Research Institute Group.
A team led by researcher Wei Chaoyang at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has systematically revealed the microscopic mechanism behind performance degradation of hydration-induced ion-beam-finished fused silica under gamma-ray irradiation, providing a basis for the stable service of fused silica components in radiation environments such as space.
A team from the State Key Laboratory of Ultra-Intense Laser Science and Technology at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has achieved few-cycle nonlinear pulse compression in a dispersion-engineered folded multi-pass cell, producing high-power few-cycle ultrafast laser pulses. The results were published in Optics Letters.
Why we recommend it: The original article presents a multi-pass cell compression scheme for few-cycle pulses, offering useful reference for high-power ultrafast lasers
LightCounting's latest quarterly report says NPOs dominated much of the discussion at the recent CIOE, much as the industry's enthusiasm for LPOs a few years ago. Yet sales of retimed pluggable optical modules continue to hit new highs, with Ethernet optical modules accounting for the bulk of overall sales.
Why we recommend it: The original article contrasts sales data with the hype, helping to gauge the real pace of NPO and pluggable optical modules
A team led by researcher Wei Chaoyang at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has published a review systematically covering the full technology chain of CO2 laser processing of fused silica optical components, from fundamental physical mechanisms to advanced functional applications.
A team led by researcher Tian Ye and academician Li Ruxin at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has proposed a new mechanism in which intense lasers excite surface waves on microwires that interact with relativistic charged particles to efficiently modulate spin. The approach is universal for leptons and ions and applies to particles at energies of GeV and even TeV.
A team from the State Key Laboratory of Ultra-Intense Laser Science and Technology at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has achieved, for the first time, fully optical arbitrary control of chirality and ellipticity in solid-state high-harmonic generation through dynamical symmetry engineering and quantum geometric phase manipulation.
Why we recommend it: The original work presents an all-optical method for controlling the polarization of solid-state high harmonics, relevant to attosecond circularly polarized light sources
A team led by researcher Hu Lili at SIOM studied the effects of compositional substitution on the structure and performance of Nd-doped phosphate laser glass, providing a basis for Nd:glass materials used in high-repetition-rate lasers.
Nitto Denko held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new plant in the Thang Long II Industrial Park in Hung Yen Province, Vietnam. The project represents a total investment of $160 million and will produce polarizers for smartphones and automobiles, among other products. The company is also continuing to expand its OLED polarizer base in Chengdu, China.
Huawei and the Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics have signed a strategic cooperation agreement, with AI+optics as a core focus. Huawei has pledged to prioritize computing resources and AI teams for the effort. Earlier, on September 17, Huawei unveiled the Ascend 960 superpod using near-package optics (NPO) at Huawei Connect 2026, employing 5,500 in-house Hi-ONE optical engines.
Why we recommend it: The original text places the industry-academia partnership alongside the NPO superpod, revealing Huawei's overall strategy in optical interconnect and AI optics
The Zhejiang Province Promotion Meeting on High-Quality Development of Technology-Based Enterprise Incubators was held in Hangzhou on September 20. The incubator action plan and management measures were explained, and the Hangzhou Institute of Optics delivered a presentation and hosted site visits.
C114 and CIOE jointly held the "AI+New Optical Fiber Applications Forum" in Shenzhen on September 11, focusing on high-density optical interconnect for AIDCs, G.654.E backbone deployment and hollow-core fiber. Guests from the CAICT, the three major carriers and cloud providers attended.
Landun Optoelectronics' share price has doubled in the past month on news of an acquisition of optical communications assets, but fundamentals remain weak: revenue continues to shrink, environmental monitoring revenue and gross margin have both declined, and the company has yet to turn a profit. It is seeking a breakthrough through the acquisition of optical communications assets.
C114 notes that at CIOE 2026, optical module makers competed on 1.6T, 3.2T and 6.4T speeds, while test and measurement is another crowded track. Lianxun Instruments, which listed on the STAR Market this April, saw its shares peak at RMB 2,777.77 within three months of its debut, making it the most expensive stock on the A-share market. Its business covers test equipment for optical modules and CPO optical engines.
Foshan Hui'an Digital Technology has signed an investment agreement with the Lianzhou municipal government for a high-precision smart optical camera structural components project with total investment of RMB 200 million in Lianzhou.
Xili Photonics has completed a Pre-A funding round worth over RMB 100 million, led by Futeng Capital with participation from the Shanghai Future Industry Fund and others. The funds will go toward R&D of thin-film lithium niobate photonic chips and system-on-chip integration, product iteration and wafer production line construction.
Dinglong Stock said at an investor relations event that surging AI computing demand is driving optical communications toward higher speeds, placing greater demands on upstream core materials. The company is therefore moving into high-end core optical communications materials.
Valve's new Steam Frame headset opened for pre-order registration on September 14, and large numbers of marked-up resales have appeared on overseas second-hand platforms. The article analyzes its pricing and the end of the headset industry's subsidy era.
The article profiles Friendess, which holds about 60% of China's low- and mid-power laser cutting control system market and has consistently posted gross margins near 80%.
Deng Li, deputy director of the Communications Network Construction Department at the State Grid Information & Telecommunication Center, presented a report titled "Research and Application of Specialty Optical Fiber in Power Backbone Communication Networks" at the AI+ New Optical Fiber Application Forum, outlining the engineering value of specialty optical fiber in power communication networks.
O-Film announced on August 5 that board secretary Zhou Liang had resigned due to a work reassignment, and appointed Li Yin as vice general manager and board secretary, drawing market attention in recent days.
The 27th CIOE drew nearly 190,000 visits over three days, up 32% year on year. NPO (near-package optics) products from major domestic optical module makers made a collective appearance. NPO moves the optical engine from the switch front panel to near the ASIC package without soldering it to the switch chip, balancing power consumption and serviceability.
Why we recommend it: The original article explains the trade-offs of NPO versus CPO and pluggables, helping to understand cloud vendors' selection logic
In September 2026, GoPro was acquired for $285 million by an optical communications company, down from a peak market value of about $13 billion. The article uses GoPro's rise and fall to examine the smart imaging market landscape dominated by DJI and Insta360.
Zhang Dezhi, director of the Optical Access Network Center at China Telecom Research Institute, said at a CIOE forum that the 50G-PON industry chain is fully mature and AI-based intrinsic intelligence in optical access networks is developing rapidly. He also outlined the path for upgrading the massive installed base of EPON terminals in live networks to 10 Gbit/s.
At the AI+ New Optical Fiber Application Forum during CIOE, Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable (YOFC) presented the accelerated adoption of various new optical fibers in AI computing scenarios, arguing that optical fiber has become the core transmission medium for AI computing infrastructure thanks to its ultra-high bandwidth and ultra-low latency.
A Laser Focus World article notes that mirrors or filters on satellites cannot be returned to the factory for repair, so space optical coatings must succeed the first time, requiring rigorous design, documentation and environmental validation.
Daoming Optics announced on September 18 that it had won a tender from the Guangdong Special Documents Production Center for the procurement of raw materials for new energy vehicle license plates, valued at 15.3068 million yuan.
Fujian Forecam announced on September 17 that it plans to invest about 110 million yuan of remaining raised funds in a multi-field precision optical components industrialization project and a high-performance aerospace optical lens R&D project, with the precision optical components project carrying a total investment of 87.0416 million yuan.
Jixi Semiconductor, an incubatee of the Hangzhou Institute of Optics and Mechanics, has closed a Pre-A round worth tens of millions of yuan, with joint investment from Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Fund, CASSTAR and Zhongying Venture Capital. The funds will go toward PCSEL (photonic crystal surface-emitting laser) product R&D and capacity expansion.
Zhejiang Chuang Technology, the Hangzhou Institute of Optics and Mechanics and Zheshang Bank jointly hosted a dedicated photonics industry exchange, attended by representatives of research institutes and incubated companies, industry players and investment institutions.
Fujia Gallium, an incubatee of the Hangzhou Institute of Optics and Mechanics, won second prize in the enterprise category of the 11th 'Maker China' Advanced Materials SME Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition for its project on large-size semiconductor gallium oxide single-crystal manufacturing.
Zhang Dechao of the China Mobile Research Institute told the CIOE forum that token operations will reshape optical network traffic models, with symmetric bandwidth becoming the mainstream.
RoboSense plans to sell its complete embodied-robot business for RMB 59.878 million and focus on supplying key components to robot makers; Seyond has signed a design win with Chuneng Auto for its forward-facing main LiDAR; Hesai has also announced a new move in spatial intelligence.
Wang Guangquan of the China Unicom Research Institute proposed the U-CAN architecture at the CIOE forum, using AI to drive broadband access toward 10-gigabit compute-network convergence.
A VR Tuoluo article notes that metalenses had a noticeably higher profile at CIOE 2026, where NIL Technology showcased metaEye for AR/VR eye tracking. The article maps the commercialization path for metalenses in eye tracking, ToF and AI glasses.
Why we recommend it: The original article lists specific metalens applications in XR, helping gauge how far metasurfaces have progressed from the lab to products