Author's Latest Posts


Electronics And Its Role In Climate Change


Sustainability has become a “scorching topic” (pun intended) in discussions I have with customers and ecosystem partners. It is now vital to many corporations as part of what many they report on “Environmental, Social, and Governance” (ESG). It can also be very confusing. In this post, I am trying to clarify some confusion after attending and organizing several related events recently. ... » read more

Digital Transformation At The Farnborough Airshow 2022


Alternating every year with the Paris Airshow, the Farnborough Airshow was back to an in-person event this July 2022. It focused on six key themes—space, defense, sustainability, innovation, future flight, and workforce. Within these themes, digitalization and data emerged as very prominent messages. Some of the prototypes and actual devices on display at the event felt like they were taken s... » read more

Embedded World 2022: Structural Changes In Ecosystems


As my train approaches Nuremberg for the Embedded World conference—which this year is in June versus its usual timing in February—I am reviewing my past related blogs back to 2012. My complaints about the cold weather have been a common thread in past blogs, but with a weather forecast of 28°C/80°F, I will probably ask for cooler weather at the end of the day. Past key themes included tec... » read more

Design For Context And Its Impact On EDA


At the recent CEO panel, Ed Sperling used the term “Design for Context” as one of the key trends, identifying what others have referred to as “domain specific” or “workload specific.” The term struck a chord with me, as I see it in many customer meetings across various industry verticals in the context of a specific industry driving requirements for tools and IP. Undoubtedly, semico... » read more

Electronics And Sustainability: Can Smart Engineering Save The Planet?


We just celebrated Earth Day 2022 with great fanfare. In discussions with my favorite Gen Z family member, I sense genuine concerns that sustainability goals seem like a tall order. Let’s review the contributions the electronics industry can make to sustainability. First, defining sustainability seems to lead to three main pillars—environmental, social, and economic sustainability. I fou... » read more

Autonomous Design Automation: How Far Are We?


The year is 2009, during the Design Automation Conference (DAC) at a press dinner in a posh little restaurant in San Francisco’s Civic Center. About two glasses of red wine in, one of the journalists challenges the table: “So, how far away are we from the black box that we feed with our design requirements and it produces the design that we send to the foundry?” We discussed all the indus... » read more

Are Sustainability And Safety Gen Z’s Top Requirements In 2031?


This blog is my 125th on the "Frankly Speaking" channel on SemiEngineering. A big thanks to Ed and his team for a great run and for putting up with my musings! I had started work-related blogging back in 2008, more company-specific, and some of these have since then vanished from the internet. Who would have thought! For this anniversary, I am looking forward ten years to 2031 and how generatio... » read more

Ensuring Functional Safety For Automotive AI Processors


Safety is critically important across the automotive, industrial, and aerospace and defense industries. For instance, Cadence's work with Hailo illustrates how advances in semiconductor technology and EDA deliver safe electronics without compromising low power and cost. Hailo's automotive webpage starts with the words "The pursuit for 'vision zero,'" reflecting that European road fatalitie... » read more

Three Technologies Enabling The Next Decade Of Hyperconnectivity


As it has become a tradition in my 15 years of blogging, January is a month of both reflection and outlook. At the beginning of 2022, I am excited that key themes from 5 and 10 years ago—3D integration, artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML), and ubiquitous needs for more connectivity driving 4G and 5G networks—clearly have exceeded expectations and forecasts from that time. L... » read more

Sustainability, Ecosystems, And Consumer Requirements In 2022


Last December, my 2021 outlook focused on "industry transformations" across different verticals. I had referenced a lot of the ongoing transformations in hyperscale computing, aerospace/defense, automotive, and healthcare. 2021 didn't disappoint—most of what I discussed further accelerated pace. For instance, pretty much no booth felt complete at the annual Army AUSA event if they were not... » read more

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