LG has just announced that it started mass-producing what it refers to as the "world's first flexible OLED panel," which is specifically designed for smartphones.

The topic of curved or flexible displays has been very hot recently, with Samsung and LG both racing to be the first company to launch a device with such a display. If LG has officially announced it already started mass-production, it might just beat Samsung to the punch.

The new "state-of-the-art" panel will mark an important step forward for LG. The company also launched the world's first 55-inch OLED TV display earlier this year.

"LG Display is launching a new era of flexible displays for smartphones with its industry-leading technology," LG Display EVP and CTO Dr. Sang Deog Yeo touted in a press release on Monday, Oct. 7. "The flexible display market is expected to grow quickly as this technology is expected to expand further into diverse applications including automotive displays, tablets and wearable devices. Our goal is to take an early lead in the flexible display market by introducing new products with enhanced performance and differentiated designs next year."

Aside from the general "next year" timeframe, there's not much information available regarding when such devices will actually become available for purchase. Another recent press release from the company, meanwhile, mentions that these bendable panels are built on plastic substrates instead of glass. Making them flexible involves applying a "film-type encapsulation technology and attaching the protection film to the back of the panel."

The display itself seems to be concave from top to bottom, sporting a 700mm radius and a thickness of just 0.44mm. In fact, the company boasts that its new flexible display is the "world's slimmest among existing mobile device panels." Moreover, the display is also the lightest, weighing just 7.2 grams.

It's also worth mentioning that LG lists the weight for a 6-inch display, which means the company will launch a 6-inch smartphone with a flexible display next year.

With LG's flexible panel out of the bag, it now remains to be seen whether Samsung will manage to bring its own bendable display smartphone to the market first. One thing's for sure: the race is on.