Screens aren’t going anywhere, but the way we use them might be about to change. Himax Technologies—best known for its display drivers found in TVs, smartphones, and AR devices—is teaming up with its optics-focused subsidiary Liqxtal to introduce something unusual in a market full of “eye-care monitors” that mostly rely on blue-light tweaks and flicker suppression.
The companies will unveil the Liqxtal Pro-Eye, a vision-care monitor equipped with Himax’s WiseEye AI facial recognition and eye-tracking system, at the 2025 Taiwan Healthcare+ Expo this December. Early research on the device, also being presented at the event, suggests the technology could reduce eye strain for heavy device users and potentially lower risks of pseudo-myopia in children.
That’s a bold claim, but the technology behind it is more sophisticated than the average consumer display marketing pitch.
A Monitor Designed to Be Viewed From 16 Feet Away—Virtually
Most people sit 20–24 inches from their monitors, and very few think about the constant near-focus ciliary-muscle effort required to sustain that. The Pro-Eye approaches the problem differently through a proprietary optical architecture built around Liqxtal’s electrically tunable liquid crystal technology.
The display essentially projects the image to a virtual distance of around 16 feet, while keeping clarity and sharpness intact. It’s not VR, and there’s no headset. To the viewer, the content simply appears farther away, which helps reduce strain caused by near-screen focusing fatigue—a common issue for older users and anyone glued to a monitor all day.
This approach aligns more with techniques used in next-generation AR optics than traditional monitor manufacturing. And unlike the “comfort modes” other monitor vendors ship—filtered blue light, dimming, flicker reduction—the Pro-Eye uses those in tandem with the distance trick rather than as a replacement.
WiseEye AI Turns the Monitor Into a Vision-Health Guardian
One of the biggest differentiators is what powers the monitor’s intelligence: Himax’s WiseEye ultralow-power AI sensing. Originally designed for always-on facial recognition and gesture detection in IoT devices, the chip is now doing double duty as a health-monitoring engine.
The Pro-Eye uses AI to:
- Track face and eye positions in real time
- Analyze gaze patterns
- Monitor if a user drifts too close to the screen
- Provide adaptive feedback or alerts to prevent strain
- Generate personalized reports on viewing habits and posture
It’s a behavior-analytics layer for screen use, something most “smart monitors” haven’t attempted. The result is a display that not only tries to reduce strain passively but actively guides users into healthier habits—something especially relevant for children, seniors, and remote workers.
Think of it as a hybrid between a medical-grade vision-assessment tool and a productivity monitor.
A Cross-Domain Display: Medical Clinics, Remote Work, and Everyday Use
Himax and Liqxtal are positioning the Pro-Eye not just for consumers but also for a wide range of professional settings—medical clinics, telehealth environments, education centers, and corporate offices. The monitor includes privacy-protection angled shielding to block side-view peeking, a feature borrowed from business laptops, but integrated directly into the display for environments dealing with sensitive data.
While the companies didn’t release full technical specs (panel type, refresh rate, color coverage, etc.), the positioning makes it clear the Pro-Eye emphasizes wellness and security over raw visual performance. This device is aimed at the “always-on-screen” crowd—not gamers or creative professionals chasing color accuracy.
The Broader Trend: AI + Optics = The Next Display Frontier
The monitor market has been chasing innovation through resolution bumps and panel tech improvements—OLED, mini-LED, quantum dot—but eye-health is emerging as a new competitive front.
- Dell and ASUS have added AI-powered presence detection and adaptive brightness.
- Samsung’s smart monitors add IoT features but not much in the health domain.
- AR/VR companies have been experimenting with varifocal and distance-modulating optics for years to reduce eye strain.
What Himax and Liqxtal are doing is different: applying AR/MR optical principles to a desktop monitor and adding AI-driven visual behavior analytics as a core feature rather than an optional add-on. It’s a more medically grounded approach—and the research presented at Healthcare+ Expo gives it a credibility boost.
If the findings hold up under broader review, the Pro-Eye may push competing displays to rethink what “eye-care” actually means.
Industry Implications: From Passive Screens to Intelligent Interfaces
“The display as a guardian for visual health” isn’t a phrase you hear often in consumer tech. But Dr. Hung Shan Chen, President of Liqxtal, frames it as a shift toward intelligent interfaces that actively protect users, rather than inert panels that only show content.
The vision here aligns with broader trends:
- AI moving into edge devices
- Health tech merging with everyday electronics
- Rising concerns around child digital eye issues
- Remote work driving all-day monitor use
If display technology evolves into a platform for health analytics, we may eventually see features like adaptive focal modulation, posture correction, cognitive load monitoring, or screen-time optimization baked directly into hardware.
For a company like Himax—deeply embedded in display supply chains—this is a strategically smart direction.
Where to See It
Himax and Liqxtal will demo the Pro-Eye and other WiseEye-powered applications at the 2025 Taiwan Healthcare+ Expo from December 4–7 at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, Hall 1 (Booth I1109a).
Given the event’s focus on smart healthcare and med-tech intersections, the Pro-Eye likely won’t be just another gadget on the show floor—it may be one of the showcases that bridges consumer electronics and clinical insight.
