Behind The Intel-GlobalFoundries Rumor


A Wall Street Journal report that Intel is looking to buy GlobalFoundries has sparked discussions across the industry. But what exactly this would mean, and why now versus a couple years ago, needs some context. There are layers upon layers of irony behind this would-be deal, and it dates back decades to some rather famous encounters. Consider former AMD CEO Jerry Sanders' 1991 comment that ... » read more

Tradeoffs To Improve Performance, Lower Power


Generic chips are no longer acceptable in competitive markets, and the trend is growing as designs become increasingly heterogeneous and targeted to specific workloads and applications. From the edge to the cloud, including everything from vehicles, smartphones, to commercial and industrial machinery, the trend increasingly is on maximizing performance using the least amount of energy. This ... » read more

Auto OEMs Face New Competitive Threats


Automotive design and manufacturing are undergoing a fundamental shift to the left as cars increasingly are electrified and chips take over more functions formerly done by mechanical parts, setting the stage for massive disruption across a supply chain that has been in place for decades. The success of Tesla — a company that had never actually built a chip or a car — was both a surprise ... » read more

CEO Outlook: 2021


The new year will be one of significant transition and innovation for the chip industry, but there are so many new applications and market segments that broad generalizations are becoming less meaningful. Unlike in years past, where sales of computers or smart phones were a good indication of how the chip industry would fare, end markets have both multiplied and splintered, greatly increasin... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


Automotive Cadence achieved ASIL Level B in support of D (ASIL B(D))-compliant certification for its Tensilica ConnX B10 and ConnX B20 DSPs, which are designed for automotive radar, lidar, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X). SGS-TÜV Saar certified that the DSPs have support for random hardware faults and systematic faults. Synopsys is acquiring Moortec, whose process, voltage, and temperature... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers AMD and Xilinx have entered into a definitive agreement for AMD to acquire Xilinx in an all-stock transaction valued at $35 billion. With the proposed deal, AMD will enter the FPGA business, putting it further in competition with Intel. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the AMD and Xilinx boards. The transaction is expected to close by the end of calendar year 2021. U... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


Security A new certification program for hardware verification engineers from Edaptive Computing Inc (ECI) and OneSpin Solutions promises to help companies meet IC integrity standards for SoC designs for 5G, IoT, AI, automotive, industrial, defense, and avionics. These designs are often complex, with a variety of elements, such as programmable logic and different cores. The OneSpin Formal Veri... » read more

Israel: Startup Powerhouse


Israel is at the front of pack with China and the United States when it comes to tech startups. But when it comes to large, indigenous tech giants, the country is nowhere to be seen. Virtually every major semiconductor company does business in Israel, and many have a strong presence there through centers of excellence or companies they have acquired. But after decades of innovation ranging f... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers and OEMs Apple has launched a new Apple Watch and iPad. Missing from the announcement was the iPhone 12, which may appear next month, according to Krish Sankar, an analyst at Cowen. What was interesting about this week’s announcement? Apple unveiled the iPad Air with the A14 Bionic, Apple’s most advanced chip. “Apple revealed the new 8th gen iPad (starting at $329) powered by ... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


Pervasive computing — data center, edge, IoT Codasip and Metrics Design Automation announced they have integrated Metrics’ SystemVerilog RTL Simulation Platform within Codasip’s SweRV Core Support Package, version, and it will be accessible on the cloud. Aldec’s TySOM Embedded Development Kits have qualified for Amazon Web Services (AWS) IoT Greengrass. TySOM is a family of Xilinx Z... » read more

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