Transparent OLEDs: introduction and market status

The following is a guest article by Karl Guttag of KGOnTech, a display industry veteran and one of the leading independent analysts of AR and VR display technology - and a good friend. We asked Karl why we do not see transparent OLED or MicroLED displays placed directly in front of the eye in AR glasses - and this is his detailed answer.

Introduction

Ron Mertens of OLED-Info, MicroLED-Info, the MicroLED Association, and one of the organizers of MicroLED & AR/VR Connect asked for my input on “Why is there no 'simple' solution, where we place a transparent display in front of the user [for AR]?” Or more simply, why aren’t ‘transparent’ OLEDs/MicroLEDs being used in optical-see-through (OST) AR headsets?

When evaluating OST AR solutions, we need to consider the following:

• Effect on the see-through image
  • Darkening
  • Distortion and uniformity (including diffraction) of the real world
  • Artifacts such as diffraction light capture (so-called rainbow capture)
• Effect on the virtual image
  • Uniformity in brightness and color plus image contrast
  • Efficiency (power-in in Watts to light to the eye in nits)
• Forward Projection (“Eye Glow”) and other adverse social effects
• Cost, weight, thickness, and overall size

I often say that the most important measure of an AR display is how it behaves when the display is off (#1 above). As will be discussed, this is not possible with a so-called “transparent” display that is near to the eye.

KFC is testing new technologies in its new flagship restaurant near South Africa's Johannesburg airport.

The new restaurant concept includes a huge LED façade used for drive-thru ordering, a large semi-circular LED screen on the roof, but reportedly the most exciting feature is the new self-order kiosks that are based on large (likely 55") transparent touch OLED displays.

SOAR Corporation announced that it has shipped over 1.3 million transparent PMOLED displays to date. The company says that this milestone shows that transparent PMOLEDs are becoming a mainstream user interface, and that transparent displays carry real value.

As an example successful application, SOAR says that its full-color transparent PMOLEDs have enhanced the performance of golf laser rangefinders, providing much higher clarity than what is possible with transparent LCDs.

Researchers from Seoul National University have developed high-performance flexible transparent electrodes, using selective metal deposition. They have successfully implemented these electrodes in a top-emitting OLED device, to demonstrate the effectiveness.

To create these electrodes, the researchers developed a novel metal patterning technology, based on a metal vapor desorption layer (MVDL). MVDL can enable high-resolution metal mesh patterns, down to only a few micrometers (μm), without the need for chemical cleaning or lift-off processes. This helps minimize the damage to the underlying organic layers.

LG Display is showcasing a wide range of OLED displays and prototypes at SID Displayweek 2026. In this article we detail the most interesting demonstrations and technologies.

First up, is LG's 3rd-Gen Tandem OLED, these are AMOLED displays, aimed towards the automotive market. LG says that it has introduced two new technologies into its tandem stack - a deep-blue dopant and optimized hole and electron movement. It isn't clear exactly what LG refers to, but it does say that these new technologies enable tandem OLEDs with improved power consumption (18%), brightness (1,200 nits), lifetime (over 15,000 hours) and color purity and reproduction. 

LG Electronics announced a new refrigerator, the Smart InstaView French Door Refrigerator, that has a 36" transparent OLED display embedded in the upper right door. 

The OLED displays services both as a digital touch interface, and a "Dual InstaView" which means that users can view the contents of the refrigerator without opening the door. The display can also show "mesmerizing hologram-like visuals, blending the virtual with the real in a sublime fusion of art and high technology".

LG announced that it is starting to ship its transparent wireless Signature OLED T TV with a $59,999 price tag. The TV can be ordered from LG directly or from Best Buy.

LG's Signature OLED T is a 77" 4K wireless transparent OLED TV that can change from a transparent mode to a black-background mode (via a raised black contrast film) in which it operates just like a normal OLED TV. The OLED T is powered by LG's Alpha 11 AI processor, and uses LG's Zero Connect box which makes it almost completely wireless (except the power). 

LG Electronics introduced a new showcase for its automotive display technologies, the Digital Cockpit gamma. This concept demonstrator is equipped with LG’s most sophisticated vehicle technologies and features three modular solutions: the Vision Display, Intelligent Human-Machine Interface (HMI) and Connectivity & Content.

The Vision Display concept utilizes LGD's latest OLED displays to "adapt seamlessly to dynamic environments". As part of this concept, LGD includes a 12.3" transparent OLED display, and a 14.2" rollable flexible OLED that can be retracted when not in use.

Earlier this year LG Display started producing its 30-inch 1366*768 transparent OLED panels. China-based CEOLED are now offering a monitor based on this panel.

The monitor offers a brightness of 600 nits (peak), a 0.1 ms response time, and HDMI, DP, Dc and USB interfaces. The lifetime of LG's 30-inch transparent WOLED is quoted at 30,000 hours. Contact us if you're interested in this monitor, or in other solutions based on LG's range of transparent OLED displays (30-inch, 55-inch and soon 77-inch) or BOE's transparent OLEDs.

A few months ago researchers from the Fraunhofer IPMS announced that they have developed semi-transparent yellow high resolution OLED microdisplays, that are significantly lighter than conventional combiner-based optical see-through near-to-eye systems. 

The Fraunhofer IPMS now announced that it has managed to increase the transparency of these microdisplays to 45%.