Tech Giant Ready to Spend Millions on Chip Production Aimed at New-Generation Cars

On the other hand, beginning with 2024, the industry should witness a noticeable recovery, particularly thanks to the massive investments in production capacity. In other words, after two or three years of planning and millions of dollars poured into new plants and equipment, the chip industry should be in a position to produce enough semiconductors for the automotive market.

Sony wants to be part of the fun as well, so the company has recently decided to invest no more, no less than $70 million, in a new semiconductor plant in Thailand.

According to reports, the new facility will be in charge of manufacturing image sensors specifically aimed at technology installed on new-generation vehicles, including here self-driving models. The image sensors would be used to automatically identify pedestrians and obstacles, and Sony believes it could become one of the most important players on this front.

Sony aims to supply the new chips to carmakers from all over the world, with the plant to employ 2,000 people beginning with the fiscal year ending in March 2025.

For Sony, this investment is a big step towards the expansion of its operations in Thailand. When the new production plant would go online, the company’s local manufacturing power will grow by as much as 70 percent.

In the long term, the new plant in Thailand will help boost the production of image sensors and help Sony expand in the automotive industry, though the company will rely on several facilities to finish the process.

For instance, the new factory in Thailand will be in charge of producing chips using the wafers it receives from a Sony plant in Japan, but the parent company hopes the local operations would grow to become an important part of its global production network.