Cirque
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1991
- HeadquartersSalt Lake City, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
Cirque firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cirque
- Legal name
- Cirque Corporation
- Website
- https://cirque.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1991
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cirque industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Human-Machine Interface Components
- NAICS
- Computer Terminal and Other Computer Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing (334118)
- SIC
- Electronic Components & Accessories (3670)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Touchpads & Touch Input Modules (HDACAFAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- VR/XR Hardware & Accessories (Headsets, Controllers, Trackers, Haptics) (MPAFAGAG), Analog Front-End (AFE) ICs (Sensor/Medical/Industrial AFE) (HDAHAIAJ)
Keywords
Where Cirque is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Salt Lake City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Cirque business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Touchpad Modules and Components: Cirque generates revenue from selling touchpad modules including notebook trackpads, circle trackpads (16mm-40mm), and off-the-shelf GlidePoint modules. These are sold to OEMs for integration into their products and to consumers via distribution channels.
- Custom Touch ASICs: Cirque designs and sells custom capacitive sensing chips (ASICs) including Gen2/Gen3, Gen4, Gen6, and Gen6s platforms. These are integrated into Cirque's own products and potentially sold to customers requiring custom chip solutions.
- Development Kits: Sale of development kits for engineers and developers to prototype touch interfaces. Products include Telemark Development Kit ($99) and Circle Trackpad Development Kit ($99) available directly from Cirque's website and through distribution partners.
- Custom Solution Design Services: Cirque provides custom solution development for customers with unique interface requirements. The company brings together chip designers, firmware developers, mechanical engineers, and sensor designers to tackle customer projects with speed and agility.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Telemark Development Kit - Gen6 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Telemark Development Kit - Gen6s |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Circle Trackpad Development Kit - 16 & 23mm |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Circle Trackpad Development Kit - 35 & 40mm |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Cirque product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cirque designs, manufactures, and sells capacitive touch sensing technology including GlidePoint trackpads, GlideSense haptic forcepads, touch screens, and custom Touch ASICs (Gen6/Olympus and Gen6s/Timp). Its products are embedded by OEMs into notebook computers, gaming and VR/AR controllers, payment terminals, and industrial/medical equipment. Cirque also sells Arduino-based development kits directly to engineers for prototyping touch interfaces.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- GlidePoint: The original trackpad technology - capacitive touch sensing platform providing reliable and versatile user interface for notebooks and other applications
- GlideSense
- GT4
- VR Grip
- GlidePoint Circle Trackpads
- SecureSense
Products and services
- GlidePoint Trackpad Solutions The original capacitive trackpad platform providing reliable, multi-touch user interface for notebook computers, desktop trackpads, and other applications. Features precision cursor control, palm rejection, multi-finger gestures, and configurable finger tracking ballistics. Sold as modules to OEMs and off-the-shelf trackpads (Easy Cat, Smart Cat, Smart Cat Pro) to consumers.
- GlideSense Haptic Forcepads Haptic forcepads combining capacitive touch sensing with high-definition haptic feedback using Piezoelectric actuators, Linear Resonant Actuators (LRA), and magnetic mechanisms. Ultra-low z-heights as thin as 2.3-3mm with programmable tactile feedback simulating textures. Targeted at premium notebook PCs including Dell XPS 14/16, Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13, and Microsoft Surface (via Sensel technology collaboration).
- SecureSense Secure Touch Technology Proprietary secure capacitive touch technology for payment terminals protecting PIN numbers and passwords from side channel and overlay attacks. Tested by independent laboratories to meet PCI PTS requirements; K3 Reference Design granted PCI PTS 4.x Approval. Includes GT4 touch screen platform with stylus signature capabilities.
- VR Grip Touch + Proximity Sensing Platform Combines capacitive touch with proximity sensing for VR/AR controllers. Tracks user's hand and fingers on the controller surface plus finger position in open space above the controller. Provides glove-tracking-like functionality while maintaining controller tactile feedback, in a single-chip architecture powering both VR Grip sensor and traditional trackpad.
- Gen6 (Olympus) Touch Controller Platform
Quantifiable outcome
- 16mm circle touchpad is the smallest in the market
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Cirque
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Cirque technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature7 records
Cirque partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered regional, core, flagship and minor.
- Blair Electra SouthwestregionalBlair Electra Southwest appointed as new sales representative for Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Partnership brings Cirque's touch interface technologies with Blair's strong regional presence and technical sales expertise to accelerate customer outreach and market penetration in the Southern U.S.
- SenselcoreCirque licensed Sensel's award-winning haptic forcepad technology and assumed direct customer support and development for the notebook PC market. Sensel's employees joined Cirque to ensure product development continuity. The collaboration combines Sensel's best-in-class haptic technology with Cirque's 34-year history of touchpad solutions, creating the most compelling forcepad offering in the market. Sensel was the leading supplier of haptic touchpad technology in flagship products including Dell XPS 14/16, Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13, and Microsoft Surface laptops.
- Boréas TechnologiesflagshipCirque and Boréas co-developed GlideSense with Boréas' Piezo Haptic Trackpad technology - the first trackpad module for Windows 11 PC laptops with HD haptic feedback. Boréas contributed its BOS1901 piezo haptic driver chip and designed the module's entire haptic layer. The partnership enabled trackpads as slim as 2.3mm with up to 10x power efficiency improvement. Boréas' CapDrive technology enables HD haptic effects for trackpads, wearables, smartphones, and gaming controllers.
- DOTKeyminorCirque partnered with DOTKey to promote their revolutionary typing app. DOTKey, developed by BYU professor Frank Jones, provides adaptive touch typing for touch screen keyboards and mobile phones. Cirque worked with DOTKey to drive market adoption of this new input paradigm.
- Mouser ElectronicscoreCirque's innovative capacitive touch solutions became available from Mouser Electronics, a global authorized distributor. Products available include circle trackpads and development kits for gaming, consumer electronics, and industrial controls applications.
- Valve CorporationflagshipCirque's GlidePoint TM040040 touch sensor was integrated into Valve's Steam Controller. The partnership enabled high-precision touch tracking on Valve's innovative gaming controller. Cirque also developed a Steam VR Compatible Trackpad development kit for Valve's Steam VR platform.
- Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.coreCirque is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps Alpine (Nikkei 225: APELY), a world-leading electro-mechanical components supplier. The relationship began with Alps Alpine (then Alps Electric) supporting the notebook market. In 2003, Cirque became a wholly owned subsidiary. Alps Alpine provides global manufacturing scale, complementary components (joysticks, switches, haptic devices), and resources for continued innovation.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cirque competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Texas Instruments: Texas Instruments provides analog and mixed-signal ICs including capacitive sensing solutions through its MSP430 and other controller families. TI competes with Cirque at the component level for custom touch ASIC designs in industrial and medical applications, though it does not specialize in consumer-grade trackpads.
- STMicroelectronics: STMicroelectronics offers capacitive touch sensing controllers and proximity sensors for consumer, industrial, and automotive markets. ST competes with Cirque in the broader capacitive touch IC market and supplies OEMs requiring AEC-Q100 qualified components for automotive HMI applications.
- Wacom: Wacom is the established leader in pen and touch input devices for creative professionals and tablets. While Wacom's primary focus is stylus/pen technology, its broader input peripheral portfolio competes with Cirque in adjacent touch and gesture input segments for computing devices.
- NXP Semiconductors: NXP Semiconductors offers capacitive touch sensing controllers and mixed-signal ICs across automotive, industrial, and consumer markets. While NXP's touch portfolio is part of a much broader semiconductor catalog, it competes with Cirque in industrial and automotive touch applications where reliability and AEC-Q100 qualification matter.
Direct peers
- ELAN Microelectronics: ELAN Microelectronics is a Taiwan-based fabless semiconductor company that designs touch controllers and fingerprint sensors, directly competing with Cirque's ASIC business. Both companies compete for OEM touchpad sockets in notebooks and consumer electronics, with ELAN known for aggressive pricing in entry-level and mid-range segments.
- Goodix Technology: Goodix is a leading Chinese fabless semiconductor company specializing in touch controllers, fingerprint authentication, and connectivity solutions. It competes with Cirque in touch sensing ICs and is increasingly penetrating notebook, smartphone, and automotive touch applications with vertically integrated offerings.
- Synaptics: Synaptics is the dominant supplier of notebook trackpads and touch controllers to Tier 1 PC OEMs, directly competing with Cirque's GlidePoint technology in the same notebook PC socket. Both companies serve similar customers with similar capacitive touch solutions for portable computing, though Synaptics offers a broader portfolio including fingerprint sensors and display drivers.
Emerging players
- Sensel (now part of Cirque): Sensel pioneered HD haptic forcepad technology for notebook PCs and supplied Dell, Lenovo, and Microsoft flagship laptops prior to its April 2025 technology licensing and talent transfer to Cirque. As a former direct competitor in haptic touchpads, Sensel represents the category leader whose IP and relationships Cirque has now absorbed.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cirque social profiles
Digital presenceCirque financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cirque leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Cirque funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cirque M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cirque
What does Cirque do?
Cirque designs, manufactures, and sells capacitive touch sensing technology including GlidePoint trackpads, GlideSense haptic forcepads, touch screens, and custom Touch ASICs (Gen6/Olympus and Gen6s/Timp). Its products are embedded by OEMs into notebook computers, gaming and VR/AR controllers, payment terminals, and industrial/medical equipment. Cirque also sells Arduino-based development kits directly to engineers for prototyping touch interfaces.
Is Cirque a public or private company?
Cirque is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Cirque founded?
Cirque was founded in 1991. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Cirque based?
Cirque is headquartered in Salt Lake City, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cirque make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Touchpad Modules and Components are the primary driver. The others are custom Touch ASICs, development Kits and custom Solution Design Services.
Who are Cirque's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Texas Instruments, STMicroelectronics, Wacom and NXP Semiconductors. Direct peers are ELAN Microelectronics, Goodix Technology and Synaptics. Sensel (now part of Cirque) is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cirque have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cirque.
What industry is Cirque in?
Cirque's product category is Human-Machine Interface Components. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDACAFAE, Touchpads & Touch Input Modules, with a secondary code of MPAFAGAG, VR/XR Hardware & Accessories (Headsets, Controllers, Trackers, Haptics). Its NAICS code is 334118 and its SIC code is 3670.