Thermal image sensor technology developer, Obsidian Sensors, has reportedly received an undisclosed investment from Taiwan-based Himax Technologies, suppliers and manufacturers of display drivers and semiconductor products.
The financial backing will see Himax invest in Obsidian’s convertible loan note financing, building on the collaborative relationship that already exists between the two electronics firms.
Additionally, the strategic move will see the companies work together to develop an advanced thermal vision solution, combining Himax’s ‘WiseEye’ AI processing capabilities with Obsidian’s thermal imaging technology. The application is set to be aimed at supporting detection in challenging environments and boosting accuracy and reliability for applications across industries such as industrial, automotive safety and autonomy, and security systems.
In a joint statement, the two firms said: “In addition to an ongoing engineering collaboration where Obsidian leverages Himax's IC design resources and know-how, the two companies also aim to combine the advantages of Himax’s 'WiseEye' ultralow-power AI processors with Obsidian’s high-resolution thermal imaging to create an advanced thermal vision solution.”
With the agreement in place, Obsidian will harness Himax’s integrated circuit design, know-how and experience in image processing to further support its engineering efforts.
Himax CEO Jordan Wu said: “We see great potential in Obsidian Sensors' revolutionary high-resolution thermal imaging sensor. Further, we see tremendous potential of Obsidian’s technology in the automotive sector where Himax already holds a dominant position in display semiconductors.”
Obsidian CEO, John Wong, also commented on the collaborative venture, stating: “[We] look forward to a fruitful collaboration to potentially merge our market-leading thermal imaging sensor and camera technologies with Himax’s advanced ultralow-power ‘WiseEye’ endpoint AI, leveraging each other's domain expertise. Furthermore, progress has been made in the engineering projects for mixed signal integrated circuits, leveraging Himax’s decades of experience in image processing. Given our disruptive cost and scale advantage, this partnership will enable us to better cater to the needs of the rapid-growing thermal imaging market.”
For Obsidian, this latest update comes just a week after the company agreed a manufacturing partnership centered around automobile applications with Taiwanese firm Quanta Computing.
According to various US Securities & Exchange Commission filings, Obsidian raised $3.6 million of a $22 million equity target in 2018, followed by a further $2.5 million a year later and $3 million of a targeted $6 million debt finance in 2022.
