DB GlobalChip forays into mobile phone OLED driver chip market

DB GlobalChip Co., the chip design subsidiary of South Korea’s chip foundry company DB HiTek Co., has begun mass-producing organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display driver ICs (DDIs) for smartphones, expanding its presence in the OLED DDI market, the company announced on Wednesday.

The fabless chip designer’s new chips, called TCON embedded driver ICs (TEDs), are already being used in OLED panels manufactured by Samsung Display Co., which have been fitted into Samsung Electronics Co.'s recently launched Galaxy A26 smartphone model, said the company.

The move marks DB GlobalChip’s venture into the smartphone OLED DDI market, underscoring its aggressive business expansion beyond driver ICs for larger displays such as TVs and tablets.

DDI is a system chip that controls the display, acting as an interface between the system and the display panel.

DB GlobalChip’s new mobile OLED chips support full high-definition plus (FHD+) resolution, offering enhanced power efficiency and durability, according to the company.

The company said it will leverage its design intellectual properties and production capacity to deepen its penetration into OLED driver chips for premium smartphones.

In 2023, DB GlobalChip was spun off from DB HiTek, which relaunched the fabless unit as its fully owned subsidiary in March.

Write to Sookyung Seo at skseo@hankyung.com

Jennifer Nicholson-Breen edited this article.