28/9/2026
Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
President: Norio Nakajima
Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (“Murata”) has signed a business alliance agreement with Melt Interface Technologies Inc. (“Melt Interface”) aimed at creating new input interfaces for the AI era.
Under this alliance, Murata’s proprietary technologies in areas such as sensing and communications, together with its manufacturing capabilities, will be combined with Melt Interface’s expertise and product development capabilities in input interfaces to accelerate the development of new solutions.
As the first step in this collaboration, Murata will exhibit a Melt Interface hand-tracking glove
*1 incorporating Murata technology at its booth at CEATEC 2026, to be held at Makuhari Messe from October 13 to 16, 2026.
*1 Hand-tracking glove: A glove-type device that estimates the position, orientation, and movement of the wearer’s hands and fingers and captures this information as digital data.
As technology has advanced, the ways in which we input information have diversified, from PC keyboards and mice to touch operation on smartphones. In recent years, progress in AI has widened the possibilities for capturing and using a broad range of information as data, including voice, hand and finger movements, and haptic information. Realizing physical AI,
*2 for example, requires accurately capturing real-world information such as human movements and skills, converting it into data, and applying it to AI training and control. Against this background, Murata is focusing on HCI,
*3 to create new input interfaces for the AI era that build on its proprietary technologies.
*2 Physical AI: A concept and a set of technologies whereby AI recognizes the real world and acts within it through robots and machines.
*3 HCI: Short for Human-Computer Interaction. A field of technology and research concerned with the points of contact between people and computers and with the interfaces that connect them.
It was with this in mind that Murata signed the business alliance agreement with Melt Interface. Murata has a broad range of device technologies spanning sensors, communication devices, and compact electronic components, along with manufacturing capabilities that support everything from miniaturization and performance enhancement to mass production and quality assurance. Melt Interface has particular strengths in designing the interfaces that form the point of contact between people and technology, and it develops products and solutions that draw on this expertise and these technologies. By combining the two companies’ strengths through this alliance, they will accelerate the development and commercialization of new input interfaces.
One initiative that leverages these respective strengths is the companies’ collaboration in hand tracking. Melt Interface’s ContactGlove3 Pro, a hand-tracking glove, uses electromagnetic fields to accurately estimate the position and orientation of the hands and fingers. By capturing hand and finger movements as highly accurate data for AI training and as control input for robots, the glove is expected to find applications in areas such as robot learning, remote control, and capturing skill data on the factory floor. It incorporates Murata’s proprietary compact, high-sensitivity three-axis LF antenna, which contributes to stable position and orientation estimation while also enhancing the product’s value in ways such as lower power consumption and a smaller size.
The glove will be on display at Murata’s booth at CEATEC 2026.
Beyond hand-tracking technology, the two companies are working together in several areas, including developing a mask voice clip, a voice input interface that uses Murata’s piezoelectric technology. Going forward, they will further strengthen their collaboration, including by developing underlying technologies in hand tracking and various other fields, as they work to create new input interfaces for the AI era and explore business opportunities.
Building on the proprietary technologies it has cultivated in sensing, communications, and electronic components, and on its manufacturing capabilities, Murata will continue to actively pursue collaboration with external partners, including startups, combining its own technologies and expertise with theirs to create new value.
■ Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Company Profile
Head office: 10-1, Higashikotari 1-chome, Nagaokakyo-shi, Kyoto, Japan
Established: December 1950
Representative: Norio Nakajima, President and Representative Director
URL:
Business: Research, production, and sales of electronic devices made from fine ceramics
■ Melt Interface Technologies Inc. Company Profile
Head office: 1-24-1 Kanda Jimbocho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Established: March 2021
Representative: Yamato Sakoda
URL:
Business: Development, manufacturing, and sale of XR-related equipment, along with process improvement solutions for manufacturing through the use of such equipment
Murata in Brief
Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of ceramic-based passive electronic components & solutions, communication modules and power supply modules. Murata is committed to the development of advanced electronic materials and leading edge, multi-functional, high-density modules. The company has employees and manufacturing facilities throughout the world.
For more information, visit Murata's website