Blog

How Machines Are Learning to See and How People Will View Information

Mobility Foresights Technology Research | Hub Analysis | September 2026

Imaging and display technologies are converging on the same goal: putting perception and information where they are needed, with as little power and latency as possible. Three shifts define the market:

• LiDAR has reached automotive scale. Chinese automakers in particular have made it standard on mid-range models, and prices have fallen by an order of magnitude from early units.
• Cameras are becoming computers. Processing moves into the camera itself, so only relevant events are transmitted.
• Displays are being rebuilt around microLED. Its brightness and efficiency suit both large screens and the tiny microdisplays needed for augmented reality.

This hub brings together 42 Mobility Foresights market studies across seven areas: LiDAR; machine vision; infrared and specialty imaging; security and edge AI cameras; microLED, mini LED and e-paper displays; AR and smart glasses; and LED lighting.

Key Takeaways

• Solid-state LiDAR is displacing mechanical designs. Falling costs have moved LiDAR from luxury vehicles to mass-market cars and into smartphones and industrial equipment.
• Edge AI is restructuring video surveillance. Analyzing footage in the camera cuts bandwidth and storage, and shifts value toward chips and software.
• Infrared imaging is broadening. SWIR, MWIR and terahertz sensing are moving from defense into industrial inspection and automotive safety.
• MicroLED is scaling from research to production. Manufacturing equipment and interconnect are the current bottlenecks.
• Smart glasses have found a viable form factor. AI assistants and displays in ordinary-looking frames have created a consumer category.

How We Segment Imaging and Displays

1. LiDAR

LiDAR measures distance by timing reflected laser light, producing a three-dimensional map. Solid-state designs with no spinning parts have made it durable and affordable enough for mass production. Two reports cover the technology and the largest application:

• Our solid-state digital LiDAR market report covers the architectures replacing mechanical scanners.
• The automotive LiDAR sensors market study covers vehicle LiDAR, where Chinese suppliers have driven both volume and price reduction.

Three reports cover LiDAR beyond cars:

• The industrial LiDAR sensors market report covers LiDAR in logistics, mining, construction and safety systems.
• The smartphone LiDAR market study covers the compact depth sensors in phones and tablets, used for photography, measurement and augmented reality.
• The event-based LiDAR IC market report covers chips that report only changes in a scene rather than full frames, cutting data and power dramatically.

2. Machine Vision

Machine vision inspects products and guides robots on production lines. Three reports cover the segment:

• Our robotics vision guidance systems market report covers vision systems that let robots locate and pick parts.
• The in-line machine vision sensors market study covers compact sensors built into production lines for continuous inspection.
• The multispectral machine vision sensors market report covers cameras that capture several wavelength bands, revealing material differences, contamination and defects invisible to standard cameras.

3. Infrared and Specialty Imaging

Different wavelengths reveal different information. Four reports cover infrared and beyond:

• The short-wave infrared (SWIR) image sensors market report covers SWIR imaging, which can see through haze and inspect silicon, produce and packaging. New sensor technologies are lowering its historically high cost.
• The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) camera market study covers MWIR cameras for thermal imaging, gas detection and defense.
• The millimeter-wave imaging sensors market and sub-THz imaging system market reports cover imaging at millimeter and terahertz wavelengths, used in security screening and non-destructive inspection.

Specialty and scientific cameras:

• The infrared aerial camera market report covers airborne thermal imaging for surveying, agriculture and emergency response.
• The underwater imaging camera systems market study covers subsea inspection cameras.
• The radiation-hardened space cameras market report covers cameras built to survive orbital radiation.
• The light field camera systems market study covers cameras that capture direction as well as intensity, allowing refocusing after capture.
• The volumetric video capture cameras market report covers multi-camera systems that record three-dimensional moving scenes for XR content and sports.

4. Security and Edge AI Cameras

Video surveillance is being restructured by processing footage inside the camera. This cuts bandwidth and storage costs and reduces privacy exposure because raw video need not leave the device. Seven reports cover a complete edge surveillance system:

• Our edge AI surveillance system market report covers the overall system market.
• The edge AI surveillance camera market study covers the cameras.
• The edge AI surveillance sensor market report covers the image sensors inside them.
• The edge AI surveillance processing stack market study covers the on-camera compute and inference stack.
• The edge AI surveillance operating system market report covers camera operating systems.
• The edge AI surveillance control and automation market study covers the platforms that turn detections into actions.
• The edge AI surveillance encryption market report covers encryption, increasingly required by privacy regulation and government procurement rules.

Three further reports cover camera hardware and efficiency. The AI camera-on-chip systems market report covers single chips that combine image sensor and neural processing. The edge video compression camera systems market study covers advanced compression that reduces storage and network costs. The micro dome camera market report covers compact dome cameras used in retail, transport and buildings.

5. MicroLED, Mini LED and E-Paper Displays

MicroLED offers the brightness and contrast of OLED without organic degradation, but manufacturing remains the obstacle. Transferring millions of microscopic LEDs onto a substrate at high yield is the central challenge. Four reports cover the technology:

• Our microLED microdisplay market report covers the tiny high-brightness panels needed for AR glasses.
• The wearable micro-LED display market study covers wearable applications.
• The micro-LED manufacturing equipment market report covers the mass-transfer and bonding equipment that will determine cost.
• The microLED interconnect market study covers the interconnect challenge of driving millions of individual emitters.

Mini LED is the commercially mature intermediate step. The mini LED backlight display market report covers mini LED backlights, which deliver much of OLED's contrast using proven LCD manufacturing and now appear in televisions, monitors, tablets and vehicle displays.

Electronic paper serves a different need: displays that hold an image without power. Three reports cover it:

• The flexible e-paper display market report covers flexible e-paper.
• The medical device e-paper display market study covers medical applications, where low power and permanent readability matter.
• The automotive dealership smart signage display market report covers digital signage in retail and automotive showrooms.

6. AR and Smart Glasses

Smart glasses found their market when manufacturers prioritized ordinary-looking frames, cameras and AI assistants over full augmented reality. Two reports cover the consumer and optical side:

• Our AI-powered smart glasses market report covers the consumer category.
• The high refractive lens for VR equipment market study covers the high-index optical materials that make compact headsets and glasses possible.

Enterprise applications have been steady adopters:

• The augmented reality warehousing wearables market report covers hands-free picking and logistics guidance.
• The augmented reality healthcare smart glass market study covers surgical and clinical AR.

The wireless OLED contact lens market report covers display contact lenses, an early-stage technology that has produced working prototypes but faces significant power and safety challenges.

7. LED Lighting

Lighting continues to shift toward efficiency and quality of light. The energy-efficient commercial lighting market report covers commercial LED lighting and controls, driven by efficiency regulations and retrofit economics. The CCT-tunable COB LED market study covers chip-on-board LEDs whose color temperature can be adjusted, used in retail, hospitality and human-centric lighting that follows daily circadian patterns.

Where Value Is Created: The Imaging and Display Value Chain

Regional perspective

• China. The largest producer of LiDAR, displays and surveillance cameras, and the lead market for automotive LiDAR adoption.
• Taiwan and South Korea. Central to display manufacturing, including microLED and mini LED development.
• United States. Strong in imaging chips, AI camera software and AR platforms.
• Europe and Japan. Leaders in machine vision, industrial cameras and optical components.

What to Watch Through 2032

1. LiDAR cost curves: whether prices support adoption on entry-level vehicles.
2. MicroLED yield: progress in mass transfer determining when microLED reaches volume products.
3. Smart glasses displays: the shift from camera-and-audio glasses to true display glasses.
4. SWIR cost reduction: new sensor materials opening industrial and automotive uses.
5. Surveillance regulation: privacy rules shaping on-camera processing and encryption requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is solid-state LiDAR?

Solid-state LiDAR steers its laser beam electronically or with tiny mirrors instead of a rotating assembly. This makes it smaller, more durable and cheaper to manufacture, which is why it now appears in production vehicles.

Why is edge AI used in security cameras?

Analyzing video inside the camera means only relevant events are transmitted and stored, cutting bandwidth and storage costs, reducing latency and limiting how much raw footage leaves the device.

What is SWIR imaging used for?

Short-wave infrared imaging can see through haze and certain materials and detect moisture and chemical differences. It is used in electronics inspection, food sorting, agriculture and automotive vision.

What is holding back microLED displays?

Manufacturing. Placing millions of microscopic LEDs onto a substrate with high yield, and interconnecting them, remains expensive. Equipment improvements are the main path to lower cost.

How is mini LED different from microLED?

Mini LED uses small LEDs as a backlight behind an LCD panel, improving contrast with proven manufacturing. MicroLED uses microscopic LEDs as the pixels themselves, with no backlight or LCD layer.

Why have smart glasses become popular now?

Recent products emphasize normal-looking frames, cameras, audio and AI assistants rather than full augmented reality overlays, which keeps weight, battery and price acceptable to consumers.

What do Mobility Foresights imaging and display reports include?

Each linked report provides market size and multi-year forecasts, technology analysis, segmentation by product, application and region, competitive landscape and company profiles, and recent developments. Customization is available on request.

Work With Mobility Foresights

Mobility Foresights provides syndicated and custom research across LiDAR, machine vision, imaging sensors, displays and AR hardware. Each report linked above can be purchased individually or tailored to a specific technology, application or region. To request a sample or commission a bespoke study, contact our technology research team.