Key Takeaways
- Peter L. Levin has a background in applied math and computer simulations, and previously served as Senior Advisor and CTO at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
- Amida Technology Solutions, Inc. specializes in data interoperability, governance, and security, offering custom and open-source solutions since 2013.
- The company has developed the Achilles platform, a pre-synthesis tool that uses a novel graph transform to predict vulnerabilities in semiconductor devices.
Peter L. Levin has served at senior levels of leadership in the federal government, the private sector, and academe. Immediately prior to co-founding Amida, he was Senior Advisor to the Secretary and Chief Technology Officer of the Department of Veterans Affairs, where he led their health record modernization initiative. His background is in applied math and computer simulations. He has published in peer-reviewed journals as well as distinguished outlets in the popular press. Peter is an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.
Tell us about your company?
Amida Technology Solutions, Inc. is a software company that specializes in solving the most complex challenges in data interoperability, exchange, governance, and security. Founded in 2013, Amida designs, implements, deploys, and administers data service pipelines, based on both custom and open-source solutions. The company is known for its expertise in data architectures and graph-based information infrastructure.
What problems are you solving?
Amida has developed a pre-synthesis tool that exposes, identifies and mitigates vulnerabilities in semiconductor and programmable devices. Conventional methods based on formal techniques are inherently forensic and retrospective. Our Achilles platform is is based on a novel graph transform that is predictive and prospective.
What application areas are your strongest?
We are experts in all aspects of semiconductor design and test. The team’s background includes JTAG, iJTAG, cybersecurity, graph theory, and foundational elements of AI. We needed all these competencies to build the platform. Our solution transforms RTL into a structural graph, using a patented technique that we created, and which illuminates parts of the threat surface that even the most-advanced formal (assertion-based) approaches cannot see.
What keeps your customers up at night?
That an adversary can somehow manipulate the design, manufacture, test, or deployment of an advanced semiconductor device. This is an especially pernicious problem in safety-of-life or national security applications, where Trojans or malicious inclusions could impact mission success.
What does your competitive landscape look like and how do you differentiate?
There are, in fact, some really excellent solutions out there, but they are limited in scope. For example, some folks are working at the systems level, but have no ability to trace anomalies to root causes, and cannot implement countermeasures. Alternatively, there are good tools at the manufacturing level and can monitor in-field behavior, but they don’t have pre-synthesis analytical tools that prevent problems before they are permanently baked in. We fit right in the middle – pre-synthesis analysis, tuned GenAI (and preventative) instruments, and remediation in case of trouble.
What new features/technology are you working on?
We launched vulnerability analysis product at DAC last year. Since then our focus has been on risk mitigation. Specifically we can now automatically insert tuned instruments using a GenAI feature we developed. This year we will unveil Tordra, our GenAI-powered security assistant. Next we will further expand our ability to detect and mitigate even more vulnerabilities, and provide support for in-field remediation.
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