STMicroelectronics was the standout frontrunner for Company of the Year at the Best of Sensors 2026 Awards owing to its bold execution and product innovation alongside market leadership in MEMS and optical sensing.
ST’s acquisition of NXP’s MEMS sensors business, which closed in February for $950 million, strengthened its standing in auto safety for airbags, vehicle dynamics and tire pressure monitoring and industrial applications. The company already had a balanced portfolio across auto, industrial and consumer and industry analysts said the acquisition elevated ST from a top player to an even stronger challenger to MEMS market leader Bosch. That means ST is expected to be better able to scale to meet quickening demand for safety and automation.
Charlene Soucy, head of marketing for experiential technology at Questex Charlene Soucy remarked at the awards held in conjunction with Sensors Converge '26 in Santa Clara, CA, on May 6:
“This company that has demonstrated exceptional leadership and innovation across the global sensors industry.
“Over the past year, this organization has strengthened its position through strategic acquisition—expanding its capabilities in MEMS sensing and reinforcing its role in critical applications like automotive safety and industrial automation.
“At the same time, it has continued to push the boundaries of product innovation, from advanced imaging technologies to compact, low-power sensing solutions enabling robotics, smart devices, and edge AI applications.
“Combined with world-class manufacturing scale and a broad, diversified customer base, this company has made a significant impact on the industry in the past year. “
In recent months, ST has developed a mini-lidar that will be useful for robotics, industrial automation, drones and smart devices that are compact and low power. It also announced a VD1943 family of 5 MP CMOS image sensors for both global and rolling shutter modes on a single chip that reached mass production earlier in 2026.
At Sensors Converge 2026, ST showcased MEMS vibration sensing, bio-signal monitoring, gesture recognition and edge AI robotics, among other innovations.
In summary, ST’s acquisition of NXP’s MEMS sensor business and product breakthroughs along with its ability to perform high-volume manufacturing with a world class set of customers describe why it deserves the top honor. ST was also the innovator of 200 mm MEMS wafers in 2006 at its facility near Milan, Italy.
Members of the ST team at Sensors Converge gathered onstage to accept the Company of the Year Award and ST Vice President of Marketing and Applications Marco Angelici responded to questions from Fierce Sensors afterwards.
Fierce Sensors: What is the company’s response to being named Company of the Year?
Angelici: We are honored to be recognized as Company of the Year. This award reflects the dedication of our teams, the strength of our innovation, and our commitment to delivering sensing technologies that help make devices, systems, and experiences smarter, safer, and more connected.
FS: What does the fantastic past year for ST mean for the next five years?
Angelici: This fantastic year underscores the strength of our strategy and the relevance of our portfolio across key markets. Over the next five years, we see this as a foundation to keep investing in innovation, strengthen our position in strategic applications, and build deeper collaborations across the ecosystem. Our priority will remain to create long-term value for customers through technology, manufacturing excellence, and trusted partnerships.
FS: How does ST see the physical AI space affecting the need for sensors and related devices? Are you able to keep up with the expected demand?
Angelici: Physical AI is a very exciting space because it brings intelligence into the real world, where sensing, understanding, and reacting to the environment with no latency are essential. For ST, this reinforces the importance of sensors and related devices, since they are a foundational layer for systems that need to perceive motion, proximity, pressure, environmental conditions, and context. Also modelling our sensors and actuators into digital twins simulators becomes of primary importance dealing with physical AI, enabling our customers with tools that reduces the time to market and the cost of development.
FS: What are the most significant difficulties for a large company like ST? Is it around an available supply of needed materials? Or tariffs? Is the labor situation any better for hiring needed talent? Does the global socio-economic status bear greatly on ST?
Angelici: For a company like ST, the big challenges are usually a mix of things — supply chain, access to key materials, trade and tariff pressures, talent, and the wider economic climate. We work hard to stay flexible, keep our supply base strong, and make sure we can keep supporting customers reliably.
FS: Does ST have a thought about the concerns over AI from the general public?
Angelici: At ST, we believe it is important to develop technology responsibly. AI should be designed to support people, not replace human judgment, and it needs to be built in a way that earns trust. That means making sure solutions are reliable, respectful of privacy, and deployed with clear purpose. We think public confidence will grow when people see AI creating tangible benefits in everyday life..
FS: I’m sure the prospects for growth are good and wonder how ST expects to remain competitive against Bosch or others?
Angelici: We respect all competitors as we view competition as a healthy driver of innovation. Our focus is on staying competitive by combining a broad portfolio of products and technologies beyond MEMS, strong customer relationships, manufacturing scale, and a relentless pace of innovation. We bring value where it matters most: by helping customers solve real problems, improving performance and reliability, and supporting them with technologies that can scale across many applications. In the end, our competitiveness comes from execution — being close to our customers, investing in the right areas, and continuing to deliver quality and trust over the long term.
Other winners of the Best of Sensors 2026 are available online.
