CIS market to reach over $30 billion by 2030, driven by mobile, automotive, and security apps

Yole Group announced the release of the latest edition of its annual imaging reference report: Status of the CMOS Image Sensor Industry 2025.

In this new publication, Yole Group’s imaging analysts offer a comprehensive and strategic exploration of the global CIS industry, covering device technologies, end-market evolution, competitive shifts, and regional ecosystems.

Following a period of modest growth, the CIS market experienced a significant rebound in 2024, with revenues rising by 6.4% year-over-year, driven by the rebound in smartphone sales as forecast by Yole Group’s analysts. This percentage marked an acceleration from the 2.3% growth between 2022 and 2023. Yole Group forecasts this upward trend to continue into 2025, supported by momentum in mobile, automotive, and security applications. Total CIS revenues are projected to grow from $23.2 billion in 2024 to $30.1 billion in 2030.

Florian Domengie, PhD., Principal Technology & Market Analyst, Imaging at Yole Group: “CIS products are still expanding into existing and new applications. While smartphones remain a critical driver, emerging applications in automotive and next-gen consumer devices are creating new opportunities for differentiation and growth.”

Emerging dynamics: beyond mobile, toward diversification
The mobile sector remains the primary CIS market segment, but automotive imaging is growing rapidly, driven by expanding ADAS, in-cabin monitoring, and surround-view applications. The automotive Imaging market and related technologies have been deeply analyzed in Yole Group’s Automotive Imaging 2025 report.

In the Status of the Camera Module Industry 2024 report, Yole Group’s analysts investigate the camera module market. As discussed in this report, in 2023, 6.57 billion camera modules were shipped, with automotive reaching 236 million units, nearly 4% of the total, averaging almost three cameras per vehicle. The 2025 edition is coming soon.

Chinese players gain ground
The Status of CMOS Imaging Sensor report describes the ecosystem dynamics. It includes geographic market shares over the 2020-2024 period, highlighting the more pronounced competitive landscape. It details the CIS leaders’ differentiated strategies and their impact on the overall CIS ecosystem. Moreover, this 2025 edition offers a special focus on the Chinese players’ hybrid strategy for CIS manufacturing.

Yole Group’s analysts highlight a shifting competitive landscape:
* Sony strengthened its lead, gaining 1% market share and moving closer to its 50% target.
* SmartSens experienced a dramatic +105.7% YoY revenue increase, breaking into mobile, security, and automotive markets and climbing in global rankings.
* SK Hynix is retaining only legacy products to refocus its core activities on memory.
* Samsung maintained stable revenue, while STMicroelectronics and onsemi lost market share.
* US and European players may continue losing ground, while Sony and Chinese suppliers are expected to expand further in 2025.

Anas Chalak, Technology & Market Analyst, Imaging at Yole Group, said, "Looking ahead, Sony, Omnivision, and SmartSens are projected to grow revenues based on early 2025 performance."

Technology and trade: stability and strategic adaptation
Despite geopolitical tensions, the CIS industry has remained resilient. The US-China trade war has had a limited impact, as CIS technology relies on mature nodes, between 22nm and 180nm, that are not targeted by export restrictions.

Chinese CIS suppliers have adopted hybrid strategies to ensure supply-chain stability. For example:

* SmartSens collaborates with both domestic and international foundries.
* However, GalaxyCore operates its own fab while maintaining external partnerships.

“These strategies allow Chinese players to scale efficiently, reduce risk, and meet local demand across smartphones, surveillance, and automotive”, explains Florian Domengie from Yole Group.

Key takeaways:
Market figures: CIS revenues are expected to grow at a 4.4% CAGR between 2024 and 2030. During this period, the market will increase from $23.2 billion to $30.1 billion.
Applications: Mobile remains the leading driver, but automotive and security applications are gaining strategic relevance.
Ecosystem: US-China trade tensions have a limited impact on CIS, with Chinese players adapting via hybrid foundry strategies and domestic fabs. – Sony continues to lead the market, while Chinese players like SmartSens surge, reshaping global dynamics. – Technology focus: advanced imaging technologies, such as optical metasurfaces and neuromorphic sensing, are poised to enhance use cases.