Hear the Future. Global Audio Summit 2025, Shanghai, China

Over a period of 10 days, at the end of March 2025, I have visited the vibrant Shanghai region of China following an invitation by the China Audio Industry Association (CAIA) to attend the organization's Global Audio Summit 2025. I have often participated in events promoted by national and international audio industry associations, mostly oriented by scientific, academic, engineering, or trading charters. But this one was one of the most vibrant product development conferences I have ever attended. Here is my report.

USound announced the availability of a new dual driver module created in collaboration with Luxshare-ICT. This is the practical result of the collaboration between the two companies announced in 2022, targeting the development of a new audio solution that would fulfill all criteria for true wireless stereo (TWS) and in-ear monitors (IEMs). The new Gemini 2.0 UAM-C1102 dual driver module is now available.

Austrian MEMS piezoelectric microspeaker specialist USound announced an agreement with Luxshare-ICT, one of the largest manufacturers and supplier for global consumer electronics brands. Luxshare-ICT chose USound as its strategical MEMS speaker supplier for its new ultra-compact hybrid audio module intended to power next-generation innovative dual-driver true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds. The new Luxshare-ICT audio TWS solution will be in mass production in 2023.

USound, the Austrian pioneer of MEMS speakers, announced the release of an audio module designed to enhance the performance of true wireless earbuds and hearing aids, enabling new degrees of design freedom. As USound underscores, with this new integrated solution, manufacturers can create more ergonomic and comfortable designs, with extended battery life and audio quality, while the form factor of hearing aids and TWS earbuds can be considerably reduced.

This article for Voice Coil magazine offers a valuable perspective about one of the most promising manufacturing opportunities in Asia. While there has been speaker parts manufacturing and speaker assembly for more than 20 years in Vietnam, the recent influx of speaker and audio OEM/ODMs that are expanding satellite factories through the country was motivated particularly by companies looking to counter the trading tariffs imposed in the United States. This article was originally published in Voice Coil, September 2020.