MicroLED Apple Watch Ultra Project Potentially Loses Another Supplier
The rumored microLED Apple Watch Ultra project may have lost another key supplier, according to Display Supply Chain Consultants CEO Ross Young.
In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday, manufacturing equipment company Kulicke & Soffa said that one of its "strategic customers" has canceled a project related to the "advanced display" market:
Previously referred to as Project W, the Company has been engaged with one of its strategic customers (the "Customer") to support the Customer with the development and future mass production of certain technologies relating to advanced display (the "Project"). In connection with the Customer's strategic review of its business, the Customer has informed the Company that it has cancelled the Project.
In a social media post on Monday, Young suggested that "Project W" was potentially related to the microLED Apple Watch. The company said it expects to incur charges of up to $130 million as a result of ceasing operations related to the project.
Kulicke & Soffa's website advertises a "next generation LED die transfer" system for microLED and miniLED displays with "an unprecedented transfer rate at high precision."
Earlier this month, Apple supplier AMS-Osram similarly announced it would "re-assess its microLED strategy" after a "cornerstone project" was "unexpectedly cancelled." Young believes that project also related to the microLED Apple Watch, so there are now at least two major suppliers that have indicated they are no longer involved.
Both Display Supply Chain Consultants and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believe that Apple has outright canceled the microLED Apple Watch project for now, but other sources like Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and DigiTimes have cast doubt and believe that Apple has or is actively seeking alternative suppliers for the project.
In any case, a microLED Apple Watch Ultra appears to remain several years away at a minimum.
Popular Stories
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below.
Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker.
According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found.
Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future.
"I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
Apple has ordered 22 million OLED panels from Samsung Display for the first foldable iPhone, signaling a significantly larger production target than the display industry had previously anticipated, ET News reports.
In the now-seemingly deleted report, ET News claimed that Samsung plans to mass-produce 11 million inward-folding OLED displays for Apple next year, as well as 11 million...
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone.
In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
Apple and Google are teaming up to make it easier for users to switch between iPhone and Android smartphones, according to 9to5Google. There is a new Android Canary build available today that simplifies data transfer between two smartphones, and Apple is going to implement the functionality in an upcoming iOS 26 beta.
Apple already has a Move to iOS app for transferring data from an Android...
Apple today announced that Fitness+ is expanding to 28 new markets on December 15 in the service's largest international rollout since launch, accompanied by new language dubbing and a K-Pop music genre.
Apple Fitness+ will become available in Chile, Hong Kong, India, the Netherlands, Singapore, Taiwan, and additional regions on December 15, with Japan scheduled to follow early next year....
