Apple Cancels Apple Watch MicroLED Project Due to Soaring Costs, LG Demands Compensation

Reports indicate that Apple was considering launching an Apple Watch featuring a MicroLED display, aiming to move away from the long-used OLED panels. However, due to significant technical challenges and potential supply chain constraints, Apple has abandoned this plan. LG, which was chosen as Apple’s primary MicroLED supplier, has incurred substantial costs due to the project’s cancellation. LG is now urging Apple to cover the expenses related to panel testing and production.

LG made significant progress in developing MicroLED panels for Apple, investing heavily in the project that never came to fruition. The supplier secured 14 patents in the United States to acquire the technology from Taiwan’s Ultra Display, but the full cost has yet to be settled. Given that LG is also a primary supplier of OLED displays for Apple’s iPhones, it remains to be seen how Apple will respond to these claims and whether any compensation will be offered.

Additionally, LG relocated its equipment from Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, to Paju, Gyeonggi Province, incurring further transportation costs, in a bid to secure space for the MicroLED backplane process. The supplier also assembled a dedicated task force for this project. It is currently unclear whether this team has been reassigned or forced to resign following the project’s cancellation.

Reports suggest that LG spent billions of Korean won preparing MicroLED displays for Apple’s Apple Watch. Despite the clear advantages of the new display technology over standard OLED panels, Apple reportedly failed to recognize its economic viability, as OLED panels remain superior to LCD displays. While MicroLED panels offer better brightness and color accuracy than traditional OLED panels, their significantly higher costs could have driven up the price of the Apple Watch.

Apple had planned to begin its MicroLED transition with the Apple Watch and eventually expand the technology to the iPhone and iPad product lines once production and cost hurdles were overcome. It is currently unclear whether the company has permanently abandoned MicroLED displays or if it plans to revisit the technology at a later date. LG is seeking compensation from Apple for the development and additional costs, but whether the iPhone maker will pay or reach another agreement remains uncertain.