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AAC Technologies Expands its Global Reach with Opening of New MEMS Microphone Design Center in Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh joins a growing worldwide network of R&D centers located in China, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the United States

Expanding its commitment to invest in the build-out of a worldwide network of R&D centers that advance the technologies critical to the performance of smartphones and other mobile devices, AAC Technologies Holdings Inc. (“AAC”), today announced the opening of a MEMS microphone center in Edinburgh, Scotland that expands the company’s global footprint and reinforces its leadership position in the design of next generation microphone system-level solutions.

“As a globally-focused and internationally diverse company, AAC is committed to developing system-level solutions across the world, wherever talent and expertise can be leveraged,” said David Plekenpol, AAC Chief Strategy Officer and Chairman of the American & European Region. “The opening of Edinburgh strengthens our ability to continue developing innovative MEMS microphone solutions in an evolving mobile marketplace.”

With the opening of the Edinburgh office, AAC is expanding its MEMS research and development, pursuing microphones with smaller physical sizes, better signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), lower power draw, and improved ruggedness and reliability. These attributes, along with advanced programming, will enable MEMS microphones to be used in new situations or devices that offer improved keyword detection, user recognition, multi-language recognition and custom wake-up words. Optimizing the signal pathway and processing is another key goal, which can result in dramatic power savings by limiting the need for a power-hungry DSP to process audio signals.

Colin Jenkins, who has an extensive career developing MEMS microphone technology, will serve as R&D Director and on-site lead for the group. He will be joined by former colleagues, as well as strategic hires involved in AAC’s expansion plans.

“Our team brings more than 40 years of MEMS experience to AAC, a company that is already very well established in the field,” stated Jenkins. “The combination of our experience and AAC’s market knowledge and long-term commitment to the industry will result in some very exciting product developments. Furthermore, as one of the UK’s top technology hubs, Edinburgh offers us a wealth of university lab access and the opportunity to recruit top-tier local talent with extensive MEMS expertise.”

The new center strategically positions AAC to continue to lead the industry as a wave of voice-controlled artificial intelligence applications increasingly become central to the smartphone and mobile user experience. AAC is already a global leader in providing MEMS microphones for smartphones and, as such, the company understands the growing use and value of the technology in a range of devices – from smartphones with multi-mic arrays to smart light bulbs with on-board voice control.

“AAC is focused on leading the industry in the development of multi-microphone system-level solutions that improve clarity and directionality, and leverage the potential offered by voice control,” concluded Plekenpol. “As a supplier, our success leads to device makers’ success, and every investment we make in new technologies benefits the entire smartphone industry by enabling new capabilities and enhancing the user experience of their devices.”

AAC’s existing suite of MEMS microphone solutions is currently used by leading OEMs such as Amazon, Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo. AAC Technologies (Scotland) Ltd. joins AAC R&D centers currently located in China, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the United States.

For more information on the company’s MEMS microphone solutions, click here. For the press kit, click here.

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