Image sensors cover an expanded field of applications, ranging from smartphones to machine vision and automotive. Soon the day will come when artificial intelligence (AI) — both AI sensing and AI processing — takes place very close to the source of sensor data, if not directly at the sensor level.

The CMOS imaging sensor (CIS) market follows a continuous growth trend. According to market research firm Yole Développement, the CIS market revenue reached $19.3 billion in 2019, neared $21 billion in 2020 and is expected to get to $27 billion in 2025. It will also represent 5.1% of the global semiconductor sales in 2021, “becoming a very significant sub-segment,” said Pierre Cambou, principal analyst at Yole Développement, in a session at SEMI’s recent MEMS & Imaging Sensors Forum, as part of the Technology Unites Global Summit.

Looking at the different applications, CMOS image sensors started as webcams and mobile phones with the low-end, high-volume markets. They have gradually reached other segments such as automotive, broadcast, medical, and industrial segments. In 2019, for reference, the mobile segment represented almost 70% of the CIS revenue, while consumer photography accounted for about 5%, computing (i.e., PC and Tablets) for almost 8%, automotive for 7%, and industry around 3%. Last year, Cambou indicated, all these segments had a 25% growth, except for consumer photography.

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