While this past year has been challenging, it has also created many opportunities for innovation and growth in the optics industry. From the creation of UV-C chambers for mask decontamination, to new and improved tools for the healthcare industry, to the growth of AR/VR for both professional and personal use (and more), engineers have been creating new technologies and catapulting the optics industry into the future.

At Zemax, we are excited to watch our industry grow and are inspired by our customers and their innovations. We look forward to seeing what lies ahead, and right now the outlook for the future of the industry is positive:

The Global Photonics Market - Forecasts from 2020 to 2025 report released earlier this year, states the “global photonics market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.85% to reach US$829.775 billion by 2025, from US$589.950 billion in 2019.” This is part to the large role Photonics plays in addressing healthcare needs across the globe, particularly in areas of medical imaging and early disease detection. Other areas of growth include photonic sensors, IoT, silicon photonics and augmented reality.

AR/VR have seen tremendous growth this year, as businesses and individuals turn to new ways for communication and entertainment, with “global spending on augmented reality and virtual reality forecasted to be US$18.8 billion in 2020.” Aside from gaming, AR/VR can be used for helping technicians and engineers with remote assistance and interactive workspaces. The popularity of AR/VR will continue to grow, giving engineers opportunities for continued innovation.

Insights and inspiration from optics innovators

Last month at our global conference, Zemax CTO Sanjay Gangadhara hosted a panel discussion with three up and coming innovators in the optics space:

Stan Larroque, Founder of Lynx;

Zak Niazi, CEO of Circle Optics

Ruchira Pratihar, Co-Founder & Director of software engineering at Odin Technologies, LLC

During their discussion, the panelists discussed their recent projects, trends in the industry and what they predict for the future of the industry. They also touched on how COVID-19 has impacted each of their organizations and projects, and how they used these challenges for inspiration to create new and creative solutions.

We are excited to be able to replay this session in our upcoming webinar on December 10th. Register today for our Innovating into the Future: Zemax Customer Panel webinar and secure your spot!