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Chinese sensor maker QST Corporation raised CNY 350 million in a Series B round of funding led by Walden International, among other investors.
Eyeing the lucrative domestic markets of Industrial Internet and new-generation sensors, QST is planning to ramp up its efforts toward the mass-production of its Inertial measurement units (IMUs) and supply chain optimization.
Despite the lack of momentum in auto sales, the company is also expanding auto sensor production capacity using the investments. Research on the next-generation of sensors – comprised of acceleration transducers, magnetics sensors, IMU and Ambient Light Sensors (ALS) and so on – is at the front as well.
Founded in 2012 in Shanghai, the company designs and manufactures sensors while providing intelligent services and solutions to clients. It focuses on the approach of Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) to make motion sensors. It sells these to various industry verticals, including consumer electronics, industrials, auto electronics and agriculture.
The three largest vendors – Broadcom, Robert Bosch and STMicroelectronics – are dominant in the MEMS market, according to their sales in 2017. Thanks to the growing usage of wearable devices, smartphones and laptops, etc., consumer electronics verticals accounted for a significant share in the MEMS market in 2019.
On the other hand, QSTs strategy towards expanding its auto sensors profile falls perfectly within a rising trend. The increasing demand for safety and security in automobiles and sensors playing a critical role in hindering car accidents have become the new catalysts for the growth of the industry.
The next primary window of opportunity for sensor vendors is the Internet of Things (IoT), and China is a global focal point, containing as it does the most application scenarios for IoT, according to company founder Sun Zhen.
"Domestic players have an advantage in providing tailored materials according to needs, and customization services will benefit from the competition between overseas suppliers, " the founder said.