Egis Technology Inc (神盾), the world’s second-biggest fingerprint sensor supplier, yesterday said that it has secured orders to supply its products to South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co and its affiliate, Kia Motors Corp, in its latest bid to expand its presence in the higher-margin automotive components segment.
In a statement, the firm said that since May, it has been shipping fingerprint sensor products for Hyundai’s Genesis models and Kia’s new flagship K9 sedans.
Egis’ fingerprint sensors are used in vehicle activation and unlocking on Kia vehicles, along with the Kia Pay system, replacing the previous password mode, the statement said.
Photo: Screen grab from Egis Technology Inc’s Web site
Kia’s fingerprint recognition system allows vehicle owners to personalize settings.
When Kia owners start their vehicle using Egis’ fingerprint sensor, the feature automatically adjusts the seat position, side and back mirrors, internal temperature and dashboard, the statement said.
The personalized fingerprint recognition system can be connected to a payment function, Kia Pay, replacing the password with biometrics to authorize the payments, it added.
Over the past few years, Egis, which supplies fingerprint sensors to Samsung Electronics Co, as well as Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp (歐珀) and other Chinese phone makers, has found applications for its fingerprint sensors in segments other than smartphones.
To generate new growth, it has expanded product lineups beyond fingerprint sensors, even as the COVID-19 pandemic has hit revenue and disrupted supply chains.
The firm’s revenue last year fell 15 percent to NT$6.22 billion (US$222.17 million), or earnings per share of NT$9.14, down from NT$12.6 in 2019.
Revenue in the first six months of this year continued to trend downward, declining 42.77 percent to NT$1.82 billion, compared with NT$3.17 billion in the same period last year.
Egis shareholders on Monday voted to distribute a cash dividend of NT$15 per share.
Separately yesterday, chip testing and packaging service provider King Yuan Electronics Co (京元電子) said that its board of directors approved to increase this year’s capital expenditure for the company and its subsidiary to NT$16 billion — the highest in the company’s history.
The new amount is 70 percent more than the NT$9.38 billion previously budgeted by the firm, King Yuan said in a regulatory filing.
The firm plans to use the capital to expand its manufacturing capacity in Taiwan and China, while meeting demand from customers and market conditions, it added.
King Yuan last week reported revenue of NT$1.98 billion for last month, a monthly decline of 30.86 percent and an annual decline of 20.52 percent.
The company’s revenue last month was its lowest in 26 consecutive months, as King Yuan’s operations were affected by a temporary quarantine of workers due to a cluster of COVID-19 infections at its plant in Miaoli County’s Jhunan Township (竹南).
In the first six months of this year, cumulative revenue increased 3.88 percent year-on-year to NT$15.23 billion, company data showed.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said its materials management head, Vanessa Lee (李文如), had tendered her resignation for personal reasons. The personnel adjustment takes effect tomorrow, TSMC said in a statement. The latest development came one month after Lee reportedly took leave from the middle of last month. Cliff Hou (侯永清), senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer, is to concurrently take on the role of head of the materials management division, which has been under his supervision, TSMC said. Lee, who joined TSMC in 2022, was appointed senior director of materials management and
Gudeng Precision Industrial Co (家登精密), the sole extreme ultraviolet pod supplier to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), yesterday said it has trimmed its revenue growth target for this year as US tariffs are likely to depress customer demand and weigh on the whole supply chain. Gudeng’s remarks came after the US on Monday notified 14 countries, including Japan and South Korea, of new tariff rates that are set to take effect on Aug. 1. Taiwan is still negotiating for a rate lower than the 32 percent “reciprocal” tariffs announced by the US in April, which it later postponed to today. The
MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR: Revenue from AI servers made up more than 50 percent of Wistron’s total server revenue in the second quarter, the company said Wistron Corp (緯創) on Tuesday reported a 135.6 percent year-on-year surge in revenue for last month, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers, with the momentum expected to extend into the third quarter. Revenue last month reached NT$209.18 billion (US$7.2 billion), a record high for June, bringing second-quarter revenue to NT$551.29 billion, a 129.47 percent annual increase, the company said. Revenue in the first half of the year totaled NT$897.77 billion, up 87.36 percent from a year earlier and also a record high for the period, it said. The company remains cautiously optimistic about AI server shipments in the third quarter,
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Thursday met with US President Donald Trump at the White House, days before a planned trip to China by the head of the world’s most valuable chipmaker, people familiar with the matter said. Details of what the two men discussed were not immediately available, and the people familiar with the meeting declined to elaborate on the agenda. Spokespeople for the White House had no immediate comment. Nvidia declined to comment. Nvidia’s CEO has been vocal about the need for US companies to access the world’s largest semiconductor market and is a frequent visitor to China.
RSS