{"text":[[{"start":11.18,"text":"A Japanese battery supplier for Apple is moving into smart glasses, putting it in direct competition with Chinese rivals in the race to produce the lightest and most power-efficient wearables."}],[{"start":24.53,"text":"TDK chief executive Noboru Saito said the Tokyo-based company was establishing a new unit to develop systems for smart glasses integrated with artificial intelligence using its batteries, eye-tracking software and sensors."}],[{"start":39.47,"text":"“We also have the battery technology here in the smart glasses. Combined with sensors, we will be able to provide the engine inside smart glasses,” Saito said in an interview with the Financial Times. “The key differentiator is power consumption."}],[{"start":56.709999999999994,"text":"“Power consumption is one of the key talking points [with customers] because we have to put a battery here in a very small space,” he added."}],[{"start":64.88999999999999,"text":"TDK is credited with revolutionising the music industry by inventing high audio quality cassette tapes in 1968. The electronics group has since transformed to become the world’s biggest smartphone battery supplier, providing components for Apple, Huawei and Xiaomi."}],[{"start":85.12999999999998,"text":"The company’s expansion into smart glasses comes as US tech groups are trying to diversify their supply chains over concerns Chinese companies dominate the production of critical technology components. The FT previously reported that Meta was struggling to find alternative suppliers to China’s Goertek for parts used in its smart glasses."}],[{"start":109.57999999999998,"text":"Meta’s Ray-Ban spectacles lead global smart glasses sales, estimated to be about 9.5mn units in 2025, according to Macquarie analysts. The analysts forecast sales to grow sixfold to 60mn units per year by 2030."}],[{"start":128.07,"text":"Smart glasses are a consumer electronics battleground for the application of AI. TDK took over SoftEye, a US start-up, in June for an undisclosed figure to add eye-tracking software to its portfolio of technologies for wearables."}],[{"start":146.2,"text":"Most smart glasses use a tiny display in the temple arm to create an image, then built-in optical structures in the lens guide light into the wearer’s view, creating a floating image in the distance."}],[{"start":160.82999999999998,"text":"But TDK has developed a way of projecting images on to the user’s retina, which could drive mass adoption by making glasses lighter and potentially lower the risk of eye strain, said Nomura analyst Manabu Akizuki."}],[{"start":177.07999999999998,"text":"At the CES trade show in Las Vegas this week, the company plans to unveil a 0.4-millimetre meta-optic mirror — a thin surface with tiny nanostructures that shape refracted light — embedded in a lens that can project images directly on eyes. While still in the development stage, the technology could be commercialised within three years, according to the company."}],[{"start":199.80999999999997,"text":"“I don’t think there’s anyone comparable to TDK — they stand out as they have all the building blocks of smart glasses besides the processor,” said Akizuki. “They have the assets, resources and experience to produce the entire system. They are very likely to succeed.”"}],[{"start":217.59999999999997,"text":"Outside geopolitical threats such as US tariffs, TDK’s chief Saito acknowledged that the biggest risk “is that our growth may not be realised” as competitors race to enter new markets like smart glasses."}],[{"start":232.32999999999996,"text":"Chinese competitors are also expected to showcase their latest technological innovations in AI and robotics in Las Vegas, including Alibaba’s first self-developed smart glasses, according to state media."}],[{"start":256.52,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1767742447_9776.mp3"}