Mobile remains the leading driver, but automotive and security applications are gaining strategic relevance.
US–China trade tensions have a limited impact on CIS, with Chinese players adapting via hybrid foundry strategies and domestic fabs.
Sony continues to lead the market, while Chinese players like SmartSens surge, reshaping global dynamics.
Advanced imaging technologies, such as optical metasurfaces and neuromorphic sensing, are poised to enhance use cases.
Following a period of modest growth, the CIS market experienced a significant rebound in 2024, with revenues rising by 6.4% y-o-y, driven by the rebound in smartphone sales.
This marked an acceleration from the 2.3% growth between 2022 and 2023. Yole forecasts this upward trend to continue into 2025, supported by momentum in mobile, automotive, and security applications.
“CIS products are still expanding into existing and new applications,” says Yole’s Florien Domengie, “while smartphones remain a critical driver, emerging applications in automotive and next-gen consumer devices are creating new opportunities for differentiation and growth.
The mobile sector remains the primary CIS market segment, but automotive imaging is growing rapidly, driven by expanding ADAS, in-cabin monitoring, and surround-view applications.
In 2023, 6.57 billion camera modules were shipped, with automotive reaching 236 million units, nearly 4% of the total, averaging almost three cameras per vehicle.
Sony strengthened its lead, gaining 1% market share and moving closer to its 50% target.
SmartSens experienced a dramatic +105.7% YoY revenue increase, breaking into mobile, security, and automotive markets and climbing in global rankings.
SK Hynix is retaining only legacy products to refocus its core activities on memory.
Samsung maintained stable revenue, while STMicroelectronics and onsemi lost market share.
US and European players may continue losing ground, while Sony and Chinese suppliers are expected to expand further in 2025.
Sony, Omnivision, and SmartSens are projected to grow revenues based on early 2025 performance.
The US–China trade war has had a limited impact, as CIS technology relies on mature nodes, between 22nm and 180nm, that are not targeted by export restrictions.
Chinese CIS suppliers have adopted hybrid strategies to ensure supply-chain stability. For example:
SmartSens collaborates with both domestic and international foundries.
However, GalaxyCore operates its own fab while maintaining external partnerships.
“These strategies allow Chinese players to scale efficiently, reduce risk, and meet local demand across smartphones, surveillance, and automotive”, says Domengie.
