An iris recognition chip developed by Hongshi Technologies, a company based in East Lake High-tech Development Zone (Optics Valley of China) in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, passed a final series of checks, on Sept 17.

The chip will go into mass production by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, a world-leading semiconductor giant, by the end of this year, with expected annual output of tens of millions of chips.

Approximately the same size as a grain of rice, the chip has been in development for seven years, with Hongshi Technologies facing significant technical problems.

Established in Optics Valley of China's Future City in 2011, Hongshi Technologies is a national high-tech company with a focus on R&D of iris recognition key technology. The firm currently holds more than 80 patents for its inventions. 

The iris recognition systems developed by other companies have been applied in various areas, including finance, public security, smart buildings, and smart homes.

According to a company representative, compared with previous iris recognition technology, the new chip is fast, highly accurate, adaptable, and uses little power. It is expected to be applied in areas such as information security, financial security, and online payments.

Since the 1980s, iris recognition technology has been mainly used by governments, as well as the financial and legal industries, due to the high cost of equipment.

Next, we will promote the application of the new chips by integrating internet of things technologies and mobile apps, said Yi Kaijun, chairman of Hongshi Technologies.

We expect iris recognition technology to be used by more and more people in the future, added Yi.

Yi Kaijun shows off the new iris recognition chip developed by Hongshi Technologies. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Major products developed by Hongshi Technologies, which is based in Optics Valley of China [Photo provided to China Daily]