From the overall development trend of the global optical industry, 2026 is a crucial turning point for the "commercialization year" of optoelectronic technology. The industry development presents three core characteristics. Firstly, the explosive growth of AI computing power has driven the optical communication field to experience explosive growth. 1.6T optical modules have entered the mass production explosion period, CPO (co-packaged optics) has officially entered the commercialization year, and the global supply-demand gap of high-speed optical chips continues to expand, driving the demand of the entire optical industry chain to rise. The global market size of optical/optoelectronic core components is expected to exceed 460 billion US dollars. The growth rate of the Chinese market is far higher than the global average, making it one of the core engines of industry growth. Secondly, the geopolitical landscape profoundly affects the supply chain layout. The global optical supply chain has transformed from "global division of labor" to "regional cluster", and the US-China dual-center pattern has gradually formed. Core links such as high-end optical glass, optical chips, and special materials have been monopolized by Japanese, German, and American enterprises for a long time. Domestic substitution has become an inevitable choice and policy support focus for China's optical industry development. Thirdly, technological iteration continues to accelerate. Breakthroughs in fields such as optical interconnection, precision optics, and biomedical photonics are constantly emerging. The application scenarios of non-spherical, free-form surfaces, and computational holography (CGH) technologies continue to expand, injecting new momentum for the high-quality development of the industry.
As a professional enterprise specializing in precision optics, Zhixing Optics, founded in 2018, has rooted in the optical industrial base of Yuyao, Ningbo, focusing on the research and development, production, and sales of precision optical components and calibration and detection devices, forming a product system centered on machine vision calibration boards, non-spherical detection CGH (computational holograms), optical lenses and components. It possesses core capabilities of high-precision calibration, non-spherical detection, customized design processing, and small-batch quick response. Its products are widely used in machine vision, industrial inspection, automation, research, and optical lens manufacturing, serving many leading domestic enterprises, and are also exported to overseas markets, establishing a good brand reputation in the industry.
In the complex international situation, challenges and opportunities coexist. For Zhixing Optics, multiple favorable factors are empowering its business development. Firstly, the global AI + intelligent manufacturing and Industry 4.0 are accelerating, and there is a strong demand for automation upgrades in 3C, automotive, logistics and other fields. The high-precision calibration board, as the core supporting product of the machine vision system, has a continuously stable market demand. Zhixing Optics, with its advantages of customization, high precision and fast delivery, can further undertake orders from domestic and foreign automation manufacturers, vision integrators and research institutions, and expand its market share. Secondly, under the wave of domestic substitution, the import substitution space for high-end optical detection components is vast. Non-spherical detection CGH, high-precision standard mirrors and other products have long relied on imports. Zhixing Optics' independently developed CGH and non-spherical inspection tools can directly enter the import substitution list of domestic lens manufacturers and optical processing enterprises, demonstrating the technical strength of the national enterprise. Thirdly, Ningbo Yuyao, as China's optical industrial base, has a complete supporting system, convenient logistics and a concentration of talents. Zhixing Optics, based on the local industrial cluster, has natural advantages in supply chain stability, cost control and response speed, providing a solid guarantee for the continuous development of the enterprise. Fourthly, the global high growth in emerging fields such as intelligent driving, medical imaging, and security monitoring drives the increase in demand for high-precision optical components and calibration components, providing a broad space for Zhixing Optics to expand high-margin niche markets.
At the same time, we are also fully aware that the challenges brought by the international situation cannot be ignored. The global optical market demand is highly differentiated, with the mid-to-low-end products caught in a price war, and the profit margins are continuously shrinking. Meanwhile, the high-tech barriers and long certification cycles of high-end products require enterprises to increase the proportion of high-end products. The upstream optical glass, special substrates, photoresist, and detection equipment are highly dependent on imports from Japan and Germany. Geopolitical conflicts, exchange rate fluctuations, and extended delivery times have brought certain pressure to enterprises in terms of cost control and production delivery. International leading enterprises monopolize the high-end market, and the competition among domestic counterparts is becoming increasingly fierce, further intensifying the market competition pressure. In addition, the rise of trade protectionism in Europe and the United States has led to increased tariffs, technical regulations, and certification costs, which also pose potential risks to enterprises' foreign trade business.
Facing opportunities and challenges, Zhicheng Optics takes advantage of its core strengths, combines the international situation and industry trends, and clearly formulates four strategic layouts to strive for breakthrough development. First, it focuses on product upgrading, builds a product system of "calibration board as the base, high-end breakthrough in CGH, and extension of emerging fields", strengthens high-precision, large-size, and special-specification calibration board products, increases the research and production efforts of non-spherical CGH and free-form CGH high-end products, actively expands products in emerging fields such as automotive-grade calibration boards and medical optical components, and enhances product value-added. Second, it strengthens supply chain construction, promotes the domestic substitution of upstream materials and equipment, accelerates the certification of domestic high-quality suppliers, strengthens cooperation with local optical industry enterprises, and through long-term agreements, joint cost reduction methods, etc., enhances the autonomy and stability of the supply chain, reduces the risks brought by import dependence. Third, it optimizes market layout, adheres to the strategy of "domestic deepening and overseas expansion", binds with domestic leading machine vision, automation and optical lens enterprises, deepens customized cooperation and long-term agreement binding; at the same time, expands stable overseas markets such as Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, through international exhibitions, e-commerce platforms, agency cooperation, etc., enter the high-end research and industrial markets in Europe and the United States with high-end products, achieve market diversification, and reduce geopolitical risks. Fourth, it builds technical barriers, increases R&D investment, focuses on core technologies such as CGH algorithms, high-precision processing, and surface engineering, strengthens patent layout, promotes ISO9001, IATF16949 and other quality system certifications, benchmarks against international quality standards, and creates "small batch, fast delivery, full customization, high precision" differentiated competitive advantages, striving to become the "invisible champion" in the field of precise optical calibration and testing.
Technology drives industry growth, and innovation strengthens enterprises. Currently, the optical industry is in a crucial period of high-quality development. Ningbo Zhixing Optics will take this industrial transformation brought about by the current international situation as an opportunity, adhere to the enterprise philosophy of "integration of knowledge and action, striving for excellence", delve deeply into the field of precision optics, strengthen technological innovation, optimize product structure, expand market space, and enhance core competitiveness. In the wave of domestic substitution, it will stand at the forefront of the trend and break through in the global optical industry competition, contributing the knowledge and action strength of Zhixing to the high-quality development of China's optical industry.
