Solar Patent Wars: Maxeon Vs. Aiko (Again!)

Singapore-based solar manufacturer Maxeon is once again taking on Chinese module producer Aiko over alleged infringements of Maxeon patented technology. A look at the case, and the contested tech.

What’s Maxeon’s Back Contact Patent Beef With Aiko?

Maxeon Solar Technologies states it has filed a new patent infringement lawsuit against Aiko Solar before the Munich Regional Court I in Germany; accusing Aiko and its European distributors of infringing on Maxeon’s core back contact (BC) solar technology patent EP2297789B1.

It’s not the first (or even second) time the firm has taken a run at Aiko. Previous actions associated with the same BC solar technology family included a 2023 complaint filed before the Mannheim Regional Court concerning alleged infringement of patent EP2297788, and a 2024 complaint before the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Local Division in Düsseldorf regarding alleged infringement of patent EP3065184.

“As in our prior actions against Aiko, we continue to target distributors as defendants,” said Maxeon. “This lawsuit should serve as a reminder that patent infringement risk is not limited to manufacturers. Manufacturers and distributors of infringing product each carry risks of patent infringement.”

While only announced by Maxeon yesterday,  Aiko has published an initial response:

“AIKO hereby confirms that its ABC products are fundamentally different from the technical solutions covered by Maxeon Solar’s EP2297789 patent and do not infringe this patent.”

What Is A Back Contact Solar Cell?

Back Contact (BC) solar cells have all their metal electrical contacts to the rear of the cell, eliminating front-side shading and enabling maximum sunlight absorption. This leads to higher module energy conversion efficiency and provides some shade tolerance advantages.

Beauty being in the eye of the beholder, it could also said the use of BC improves the aesthetics of a solar panel installation given the all-black look achieved.

Maxeon (via SunPower) pioneered Interdigitated Back Contact (IBC) solar cells, which first became commercially available in 2004. You can read more about Maxeon IBC tech and its history here.

Maxeon Interdigitated Back Contact solar cells

AIKO, a comparative new kid on the solar manufacturing scene that has been attracting a lot of attention, calls its BC technology ABC – All Back Contact.

The company says N-type ABC was selected as its main focus of development for mass production in 2016 and their ABC cells were launched in 2021. Aiko is continually refining its ABC approach. In November last year, Aiko announced a collaboration with the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics (ACAP) to develop BC cells with more than 30% conversion efficiency.

While TOPCon (Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact) remains the dominant cell technology currently, back-contact is making headway with market share.

More About Maxeon

Maxeon has its roots in SunPower, a PV manufacturer that was established in the 1980s. The solar PV manufacturing aspect of SunPower was spun out of the US installation business back in 2020 and a new company emerged – Maxeon Solar Technologies.

Until March 2025, SunPower operated under Maxeon Solar Technologies, headquartered in Singapore. It’s a complicated story, and Maxeon has been experiencing some challenging conditions generally for some time. Among them, U.S. Customs & Border Protection have excluded its panels from U.S. import since July 2024.

Maxeon’s overall shipments for the six months ending June 30, 2025 were just 153.2 MW, compared to 1,014 MW for the six months ending June 30, 2024.

You can learn more about Maxeon/SunPower solar panels here.

More About Aiko

Aiko Solar is a Chinese producer that was founded in 2009. Aiko launched in Australia in March 2024 and has an office in Melbourne. While they’ve only been available here for a short time, Aiko panels took first place in the 2025 SolarQuotes Installers’ Choice Awards for the best solar panels in 2025.

Learn more about Aiko solar panels.

Whereas Maxeon has positioned itself at the premium side of the market, Aiko has been focused more towards the budget end of the spectrum.

You can compare specs and estimated pricing on selected Maxeon/SunPower and Aiko modules side-by-side — along with a bunch of other brands — on SolarQuotes’ solar panel comparison table.

Other BC Tech Players

Aside from Maxeon and Aiko, among other major manufacturers dabbling in or deep-diving into back-contact technology variants are Longi, Jinko, Winaico, TW (Tongwei) and JA Solar. Whether any of those firms are also in Maxeon’s crosshairs isn’t clear.

Patent wars are part and parcel of playing in the solar panel manufacturing game and some producers certainly have a lot of patents to protect. For example, the combatants in this particular battle:

• Maxeon: 2,000+ patents granted.
•  Aiko:3,500 patent applications, including 1,900 related to ABC technology, with 750 ABC-related patents granted.

Aside from the intellectually property infringement deterrent, solar patent wars would be helping keep a small army of lawyers off the streets and out of the pubs.