Qualcomm Investing in Sharp to Push IGZO Display Technology Forward

iphone 5 displayThe Wall Street Journal reports that Qualcomm has agreed to invest up to $120 million in Sharp as part of an effort to prop up the ailing manufacturer of displays for a wide range of electronic devices. The deal will also see the two companies working together to push Sharp's new indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) technology that has been rumored for use in a number of Apple products.

Sharp and Qualcomm will work together to develop screens based on the Japanese company's new IGZO display technology and Qualcomm's microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS, displays. The former, named for a new material used—indium gallium zinc oxide—hold several advantages over silicon-based screens, Sharp says. These latter offer promise as a lower-power alternative to today's screens.

According to Sharp, the new displays making use of the two technologies allow mobile devices to go longer between charges, provide more pixels per inch for sharper resolution and enable touch screens to be more accurate and sensitive.

The report notes that Sharp is betting on IGZO to save the company, which is in dire financial straits. Sharp is viewed as a critical partner for Apple as the iPhone maker seeks to lessen its reliance on Samsung, and there has been speculation that Apple recently structured component prepayment and equipment deals worth as much as $2 billion to help shore up Sharp's financial situation.

Popular Stories

m5 macbook pro deal

Why You Shouldn't Buy the Next MacBook Pro

Tuesday February 10, 2026 4:27 pm PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models as soon as early March, but if you can, this is one generation you should skip because there's something much better in the works. We're waiting on 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, with few changes other than the processor upgrade. There won't be any tweaks to the design or the display, but later this...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3

Wednesday February 11, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3, the latest updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out in September. The new software comes almost two months after Apple released iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes, ...
Apple Logo Zoomed

Apple Expected to Launch These 10+ Products Over the Coming Months

Tuesday February 10, 2026 6:33 am PST by
It has been a slow start to 2026 for Apple product launches, with only a new AirTag and a special Apple Watch band released so far. We are still waiting for MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the iPhone 17e, a lower-cost MacBook with an iPhone chip, long-rumored updates to the Apple TV and HomePod mini, and much more. Apple is expected to release/update the following products...
iPhone 16e Bottom Crop

Apple Reportedly Unveiling a New iPhone Next Week

Tuesday February 10, 2026 1:51 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report said the iPhone 17e will be announced in a press release on the Apple Newsroom website, so do not expect an event for this device specifically. The iPhone 17e will be a spec-bumped successor to the iPhone 16e. Rumors claim the device will have four key...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Acquires New Database App

Wednesday February 11, 2026 6:44 am PST by
Apple acquired Canadian graph database company Kuzu last year, it has emerged. The acquisition, spotted by AppleInsider, was completed in October 2025 for an undisclosed sum. The company's website was subsequently taken down and its Github repository was archived, as is commonplace for Apple acquisitions. Kuzu was "an embedded graph database built for query speed, scalability, and easy of ...

Top Rated Comments

Tankmaze Avatar
172 months ago
glad to know those japanese company making a come back in screen tech... it could give good competition for the koreans companies
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
172 months ago
I'm glad Sharp is getting these investments and they are also a display supplier to the iPhone, their screens have always been top-notch quality IMO. The TV I own from them (around 5 years old now, 720p HD) has awesome quality for the specs it has.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kaibelf Avatar
172 months ago
Apple investments? This is Qualcomm investing...

As per the article: "there has been speculation that Apple recently structured component prepayment and equipment deals worth as much as $2 billion to help shore up Sharp's financial situation."
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
172 months ago
Hopefully this + Apple's investments will ensure Sharp's continued existence, so we don't have to hear about its "dire financial straits" every time we read an article about it.

Reminds me of Apple in the 90s.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Casiotone Avatar
172 months ago
In the 90's Sharp has pulled a "Samsung" and copied the Newton, so I don't think Apple would be better off with them.

The copying thing seems to be so rampant in the far east, that to them it's good business to just copy a successful product and stick their logo on it.
Ehm, that's simply not true.

Sharp actually built parts for Apple's Newton message pad, and the ones they sold were under an official licence from Apple.

Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dwalls90 Avatar
172 months ago
Makes sense. Qualcomm needs innovative and quality phones on the market to drive sales of their chipsets. Great idea.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)