Startup Tips To Get From Seed Funding To Series A, B, C


Startups are often created by experienced engineers who figure out how to solve a technical problem they are dealing with at work, or by PhD candidates in research labs before they have even started their first full-time job. Either way, getting seed money to the tune of a few million dollars is relatively easy compared to securing further rounds of funding and achieving the company’s exit go... » read more

Current Problems Grow For Power Delivery


IR drop is becoming more problematic for a growing proportion of designs, an indication that the power delivery network (PDN) is not providing enough current to parts of the design when required. Unfortunately, there is no easy fix to this problem. In the past, when voltages were much higher, a small voltage droop didn't really matter. At the same time, wires were much thicker and presented ... » read more

New Frontiers In Fault Detection And Classification


IC manufacturers are increasingly relying on intelligent data processing to prevent downtime, improve yields, and reduce scrap. They are integrating that with fault detection and classification (FDC) to trace faults to their cause. Today’s FDC systems feature better sensors, variability control, and both predictive and prescriptive modeling. In the future, FDC will enable real-time decisio... » read more

Metrology’s Growing Role In Reducing False Defects


When a good die fails test and gets scrapped, often no one notices, because false failures look identical to real ones. Yet across the industry, these phantom defects are quietly eroding yield, inflating test costs, and masking the true health of manufacturing processes. At advanced nodes and in heterogeneous packaging, where margins are already razor-thin, even minor variations in contact r... » read more

Hybrid Approach Emerges For Edge/Cloud Inspection Of Chips


An explosion in data from inspection images and metrology measurements is creating a confusing set of demands for chipmakers and their equipment vendors. On one hand they need the massive storage and compute resources of the cloud to utilize AI/ML-based models, but they also need the faster response time of the edge to make adjustments at the tool level. Balancing these requirements is a mas... » read more

Location Verification Becomes Much Bigger Concern For Chips


Location verification is gaining traction as a way of strengthening supply chain oversight with minimal effort, fueled by tightening export controls and growing concerns about AI chip smuggling and counterfeiting. In the past, this kind of tracking was done by having one or more employees literally watch over a production run at a fab, follow the chips all the way to their destination, and a... » read more

Today’s Screen Culture Puts Higher Pressure On Display Chips


Just as cathode ray tube technology has been relegated to specialist industrial and medical settings, OLED (organic light-emitting diode) is overtaking LCD (liquid crystal display) in some applications due to its superior image quality and contrast. But OLED is not a one-size-fits-all. An array of new technologies is being developed to meet consumer demand for better, brighter screens with h... » read more

New Approaches To Limit Cyberattacks On Hardware


The number and value of cyberattacks on semiconductors is rising, but new approaches to designing and packaging chips could put a significant dent in those figures. Semiconductor-related cybersecurity attacks have multiplied more than six times since 2022, according to a report by cyber intelligence firm CloudSEK. These attacks have cost the semiconductor industry an estimated $1.05 billion ... » read more

How 3D-IC Will Change Chip Design


Experts at the Table: Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss 3D-IC design challenges and the impact on stacked die on EDA tools and methodologies, with John Ferguson, senior director of product management at Siemens EDA; Mick Posner, senior product group director for chiplet at IP solutions in Cadence's Compute Solutions Group; Mo Faisal of Movellus; Chris Mueth, new opportunities busine... » read more

Chip Industry Startup Funding: Q3 2025


The third quarter of 2025 was dominated by massive rounds for companies developing AI chips and quantum computers. Over $2.5 billion went to AI, with wafer-scale chip maker Cerebras leading the pack with a $1.1 billion raise. While several edge AI companies received backing, the quarter saw a marked shift towards solutions for the data center as firms seek to reduce the cost and power consumpti... » read more

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