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Ann Mutschler

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Ann Mutschler is executive editor at Semiconductor Engineering.

Author's Latest Posts

DAC On Cars
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Jun, 2016 - Comments: 0

With the yearly Design Automation Conference upon us in mere days, I’ve been combing through the program looking for sessions to attend in between already-scheduled roundtables I’m running, speakers I am introducing here and here, a panel I’m moderating, along with other meetings. You might imagine I’ve got my eye on the automotive sessions starting with the opening keynote. It's... » read more

Lawyers, Insurance And Self-Driving Cars
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Jun, 2016 - Comments: 1

Self-driving cars are drawing semiconductor companies into legal and regulatory issues for the first time, adding a new level of scrutiny on cutting-edge chip technology. It also opens up a whole new field for legal interpretation, case law, and regulation. While most liability cases in the past never crossed below the system vendor/supplier level, that could change with autonomous vehic... » read more

Open Standards For Verification?
By Ann Mutschler - 01 Jun, 2016 - Comments: 0

The increasing use of verification data for analyzing and testing complex designs is raising the stakes for more standardized or interoperable database formats. While interoperability between databases in chip design is not a new idea, it has a renewed sense of urgency. It takes more time and money to verify increasingly complex chips, and more of that data needs to be used earlier in the fl... » read more

System Bits: May 31
By Ann Mutschler - 31 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

In automaton we trust? It is widely believed that there are two kinds of robots: friendly and helpful; or sinister and deadly. But do humans place too much trust in robots? According to the work of Harvard University senior Serena Booth, a computer science concentrator at the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the answer is as complex and multifaceted as robots themsel... » read more

Do Single-Vendor Flows Make Sense Yet?
By Ann Mutschler - 26 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

For many years in the EDA industry, there has been talk of a complete design tool flow from a single vendor, and each of the main EDA players is capable of offering one. But whether they actually do — or should — is an interesting discussion. There are obvious pros and cons on the technical side. But it is the business and marketing issues that are really at the crux of the debate today.... » read more

System Bits: May 24
By Ann Mutschler - 24 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

Controlling autonomous vehicles in extreme conditions In an approach that could help make self-driving cars of the future safer under hazardous road conditions, a Georgia Institute of Technology research team devised a way to help keep a driverless vehicle under control as it maneuvers at the edge of its handling limits. According to the team comprised of researchers from Georgia Tech’s D... » read more

System Bits: May 17
By Ann Mutschler - 17 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

AI drives Toyota websites An innovation in artificial intelligence described in a 2001 paper by UCLA computer science professor Adnan Darwiche has found a somewhat unexpected application: helping car buyers of Toyota and Lexus customize their vehicles online. The websites let shoppers tailor their vehicle from among a range of models, colors and accessories. The software that powers the sit... » read more

The Evolving Thermal Landscape
By Ann Mutschler - 16 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

Managing heat in chips is becoming a precision balancing act at advanced nodes and with advanced packaging. While it's important to ensure that temperatures don't rise high enough to cause reliability problems, adding too much circuitry to control heat can reduce performance and lower energy efficiency. The most common approach to dealing with these issues is thermal simulation, which requir... » read more

It’s All About The Data
By Ann Mutschler - 12 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

Ah, the wonders of math and physics — they do make the world go ‘round, do they not? And even in the world of chip design, of course, it is the fundamental understanding of the physics of electricity, materials, metals, etc., that it is all possible. I just wanted to stop for a moment to marvel at how those fundamental understandings of the math and physics of things have been abstracted... » read more

IP Business Models In Flux
By Ann Mutschler - 12 May, 2016 - Comments: 0

EDA and IP suppliers are engaging with foundries earlier with each manufacturing process node, while those foundries are providing ever more optimized and tuned processes to their customers. As part of this, IP providers must port their IP offerings to the various foundries and processes, putting a squeeze on resources. That raises some difficult questions, such as how to prioritize their li... » read more

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