The LED display industry is approaching a meaningful shift in how fine-pitch screens are built. Chip-on-Glass (COG) is expected to enter early commercial production by 2026 and reach full-scale manufacturing by 2029, not as a replacement for existing LED technologies, but as a new ultra-premium tier that solves limitations traditional packaging cannot.
Rather than disrupting the market, COG will define the performance ceiling — setting new standards for thinness, uniformity, thermal stability, and architectural integration.
Every LED display relies on three fundamentals: LED chips, a substrate, and electrical interconnects. The substrate plays a critical role in determining module thickness, heat dissipation, mechanical stability, and achievable pixel density.
SMD (Surface Mount Device)
SMD packages LED chips into discrete lamp beads, which are soldered onto a PCB. This remains the industry’s dominant format, accounting for approximately 78% of the LED display market in 2024 (Mordor Intelligence). However, the physical lamp package limits how tightly pixels can be spaced and adds depth to the display structure.
COB (Chip-on-Board)
COB removes the lamp bead entirely, mounting LED chips directly onto a PCB and encapsulating them under a protective resin. This enables sub-1.0 mm pixel pitches, thinner modules, improved durability, and better thermal performance. COB is already in mass production and represented around 8% of packaged LED shipments in 2024.
COG (Chip-on-Glass)
COG takes the next step replacing the PCB substrate with glass. LED chips are mounted directly onto a glass surface using semiconductor-grade processes similar to those used in LCD and OLED manufacturing. Transparent conductive pathways are integrated into the glass itself, which also acts as the structural and protective layer.
The result is exceptional flatness, superior thermal stability, tighter manufacturing tolerances, and ultra-thin form factors particularly valuable in ultra-fine pixel pitch environments where viewers stand just feet from the display.
The manufacturing foundations for COG already exist; many major panel makers operate facilities capable of producing glass-based LED modules. What has changed is commercial viability, market demand, and application readiness.
LED displays are no longer specified solely as AV equipment. Increasingly, they are designed as architectural surfaces — replacing walls, cladding, or interior finishes.
COG enables:
Modules under 3mm thick
Weights comparable to drywall
Installation approaches inspired by glazing and façade systems
Ultra-tight tolerances for seamless wall-scale installations
At pixel pitches below 1.0 mm, PCB-based substrates begin to face mechanical and thermal constraints. Glass offers more even heat distribution, improved dimensional stability under temperature variation, and support for advanced active-matrix driving, enabling higher refresh rates and lower power consumption.
COG is not positioned to replace SMD or COB; instead, it will occupy the ultra-premium performance tier.
SMD remains the volume leader through at least 2030
COB will dominate the mid-premium segment, growing at 66% CAGR to reach $5.1 billion by 2029 (Futuresource)
COG is forecast to reach $1.5 billion in professional AV by 2029, growing at 172% CAGR
Within the projected $12–13 billion dvLED market by 2029, COG may represent around 12% market share, yet its influence will extend far beyond its unit volume.
COG will set expectations for colour consistency, pixel density, physical thinness, and architectural integration — shaping what clients, consultants, and designers come to expect across all premium LED segments.
What This Means for Specifiers and Designers
For fine-pitch projects — particularly below 1.0mm — COG will introduce new specification benchmarks.
Glass substrates offer advantages PCB-based modules cannot easily match:
Reduced structural load due to ultra-thin construction
Improved thermal performance, easing HVAC planning
Higher achievable IP ratings with simpler sealing methods
Improved optical uniformity for close-viewing environments
Early adoption will focus on applications where visual precision and form factor justify premium investment, including:
Executive briefing and experience centres
Broadcast studios and production environments
Luxury retail flagships
Premium hospitality and corporate lobbies
As production scales between 2026 and 2029, COG will become increasingly viable for high-end commercial and premium residential installations.
Where COG Fits — and Where It Doesn’t
COG is not designed to replace all LED formats. For large-format outdoor displays, rental staging, DOOH, and cost-sensitive commercial projects, SMD and COB will remain the most practical and scalable solutions.
COG’s value lies in close-viewing environments, ultra-thin architectural integration, and applications where thermal performance and optical perfection directly impact project success.
Why COG Matters
COG’s significance is not about market takeover; it’s about expanding what LED displays can be.
When LED screens begin to behave more like architectural materials than electronic products, the way spaces are designed — and specified — changes. That transition begins in 2026, with full commercial maturity expected by 2029.
At LED Studio, we see COG as the next frontier of premium display engineering — a technology that will raise expectations, sharpen design possibilities, and redefine what high-performance LED can deliver.