Google gears up for public Glass launch with investment in chipmaker Himax

In another sign that Google is gearing up for the public launch of Google Glass, Reuters reports that the company has taken a stake in Taiwanese chipmaker Himax, a specialist in display driver chips with particular expertise in controllers for LCOS micro-displays used in head-mounted displays.

Google Inc will take a 6.3 percent stake in the unit of Taiwanese chipmaker Himax Technologies Inc that develops display technology for devices such as Google Glass, Himax said.

The investment will help fund the production of liquid crystal on silicon chips and modules used in head-mounted devices such as Google Glass, head-up displays and pico-projectors, Himax said in a statement … 

Google also has the option to increase its stake to 14.8 percent within a year. With a minority stake, it’s likely that Google’s motivation is to boost the pace of development rather than to control supply.