Robert Bosch GmbH has won orders from Apple Inc to supply the next iPhone with some of its motion sensors, according to a person familiar with the deal.
It is a potential blow to InvenSense Inc, the main supplier of those smartphone components.
The change — hinted at by InvenSense’s chief financial officer in August last year — comes as the San Jose, California-based maker of motion-sensing chips seeks to complete its US$1.3 billion sale to TDK Corp, a deal partly aimed at boosting the Japanese company’s business with Apple.
Photo: Reuters
Bosch might supply as much as half of these components for the new iPhone, with InvenSense supplying the rest, the person said.
Bosch already supplies barometric pressure sensors for the iPhone, according to product teardowns by iFixit and other firms that analyze the guts of gadgets.
“People believe that the acquisition is going to go through,” Robert W. Baird analyst Tristan Gerra said. “The share loss scenario may be something that TDK had already considered.”
Rather than an existing revenue stream from supplying Apple, TDK might be more interested in InvenSense’s suite of technologies suited to growth areas like driverless cars, drones and the Internet of Things.
The risks of losing Apple as a customer were highlighted by chip developer Imagination Technologies PLC, which last month said that the iPhone maker would stop using its intellectual property within two years.
Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook tries to source components from at least two suppliers, making it easier to negotiate cheaper prices. Apple accounts for about 60 percent of InvenSense’s revenue, according to Bloomberg supply chain analysis.
Apple is expected to unveil a major upgrade to the iPhone later this year to mark the 10th anniversary of the groundbreaking device. Analysts expect consumers to buy millions of the new gadgets, generating huge orders for component suppliers.
The components produced by Bosch and InvenSense contain gyroscopes and accelerometers. Gyroscopes can tell if a phone is being held horizontally or vertically, being shaken, or pointing in a particular direction. An accelerometer detects different movements, such as side-to-side motion. Together, the sensors help measure step count, and they are useful for mobile games and augmented reality applications. In the iPhone 6S and iPhone 7, these were supplied exclusively by InvenSense, according to teardowns.
InvenSense chief financial officer Mark Dentinger said at an August investor conference that as recently as 2014 it was dominant “by a considerable margin” at the top end of the smartphone market.
“We’re still the largest player, but we are splitting some share now with our primary competitor,” he said. “Historically, it’s unlikely that most of our customers will have just one supplier over a long, long period of time.”
TDK, which rose to prominence on cassette tapes in the 1970s, has since expanded into batteries, automotive components and now the Internet of Things. The Tokyo-based company received regulatory clearance to acquire InvenSense on April 18.
“We aim to become a strong player in the sensor business with InvenSense as our perfect partner,” TDK CEO Shigenao Ishiguro said at the time.
TECH PARTNERSHIP: The deal with Arizona-based Amkor would provide TSMC with advanced packing and test capacities, a requirement to serve US customers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is collaborating with Amkor Technology Inc to provide local advanced packaging and test capacities in Arizona to address customer requirements for geographical flexibility in chip manufacturing. As part of the agreement, TSMC, the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, would contract turnkey advanced packaging and test services from Amkor at their planned facility in Peoria, Arizona, a joint statement released yesterday said. TSMC would leverage these services to support its customers, particularly those using TSMC’s advanced wafer fabrication facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, it said. The companies would jointly define the specific packaging technologies, such as TSMC’s Integrated
China’s economic planning agency yesterday outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy, but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced yesterday appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and the Shanghai Composite Index gave up a 10 percent initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to end 4.59 percent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dived 9.41 percent. Chinese National Development and Reform Commission Chairman Zheng Shanjie (鄭珊潔) said the government would frontload 100 billion yuan (US$14.2 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for next year in addition
Sales RecORD: Hon Hai’s consolidated sales rose by about 20 percent last quarter, while Largan, another Apple supplier, saw quarterly sales increase by 17 percent IPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) on Saturday reported its highest-ever quarterly sales for the third quarter on the back of solid global demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) globally, said it posted NT$1.85 trillion (US$57.93 billion) in consolidated sales in the July-to-September quarter, up 19.46 percent from the previous quarter and up 20.15 percent from a year earlier. The figure beat the previous third-quarter high of NT$1.74 trillion recorded in 2022, company data showed. Due to rising demand for AI, Hon Hai said its cloud and networking division enjoyed strong sales
Protectionism: US trade chief Katherine Tai said the hikes would help to counter unfair trade practices from China, while boosting domestic clean energy investments US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪) defended stiff tariff hikes against countries such as China, saying that paired with investment, they were a “legitimate and constructive” tool for reinvigorating domestic industries. Tai’s comments come a week after sharp tariff increases on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), EV batteries and solar cells took effect — with levies down the line on other products also recently finalized. The latest moves targeting US$18 billion in Chinese goods come weeks before next month’s US presidential election, with Democrats and Republicans pushing a hard line on China as competition between Washington and Beijing intensifies. In an interview on Thursday
RSS