Samsung has long been a component supplier for Apple even though both companies happen to be bitter rivals, that's just how business is done in this day and age, and if a new report out of Korea is to be believed then Samsung has supplied Apple with the OLED Touch Bar panel that it has introduced with the new MacBook Pros last week. The report suggests that the Touch Bar is an OLED panel from Samsung Display's A2 line and that Apple opted for it given the fact that it's significantly thinner than conventional LED panels.
The report claims that the driver control integrated circuit has also been supplied by Samsung, it's System LSI division is said to have supplied this crucial component which basically links the laptop to the Touch Bar. Neither Apple nor Samsung confirmed if this is indeed the case and we won't know for sure until a Touch Bar model of the new MacBook Pro is taken apart and its components detailed. However, it's not that hard to believe that Samsung might be the supplier given the fact that it virtually has a monopoly in the global OLED market.
We've already heard a lot of rumors in the past that Samsung might be one of the suppliers of OLED displays for the iPhone next year. Apple is expected to finally make the shift to OLED displays for the iPhone starting next year.
