San Jose, May 2026 – Canonical, the publisher of Ubuntu, and Akeana, a leading provider of high-performance RISC-V processor IP, today announced that Ubuntu 26.04 LTS (Resolute Raccoon) will come pre-installed on Akeana Alpine Software Development boards.
Building on an existing partnership, the collaboration aims to drive adoption of the RISC-V RVA23 profile by delivering a seamless, out-of-the-box developer experience on server-class silicon.
Akeana's Alpine Software Development Platform is built to the RVA23 profile, offering a server-class environment for developers to validate applications ahead of production silicon.
Pre-installing Ubuntu 26.04 LTS on Alpine boards extends this further, pairing a proven hardware baseline with the enterprise-grade Linux distribution most widely used in server environments. Together, they offer developers a complete, ready-to-use stack that removes setup overhead and accelerates the path from development to deployment.
“We are proud to be working with Canonical to bring Ubuntu 26.04 LTS to our Akeana 5000 series cores and our Alpine Server Class SoC test chip,.” says Rabin Sugumar, CEO of Akeana. Further stating “Ubuntu is a widely adopted , community-supported platform that provides meaningful software validation of our RVA23-compatible development environment. Ubuntu running on the Alpine Software Development Boards is a strong signal of the quality and maturity of what we've built.”.
"Akeana is demonstrating clear leadership with the Alpine Server Class SoC platform, built on the RVA23 profile," said Gordan Markus, Director of Silicon Alliances at Canonical. "We are excited to support this hardware with Ubuntu 26.04 LTS. These high-performance development boards are instrumental in helping us test and optimizse Ubuntu and our wider product portfolio for RISC-V. RISC-V is rapidly becoming a serious force in datacenter-class computing, and our collaboration with Akeana is a significant step toward raising ecosystem maturity and accelerating its global adoption."
About Akeana
Akeana is a driving force of change in semiconductor IP innovation and performance, on a mission to deliver world-class RISC-V-based compute, interconnect, and accelerator IP solutions. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, this venture-funded startup is dedicated to empowering customers with highly configurable technology and equitable licensing options, moving beyond the limitations of today's legacy vendors and architectures. Learn more at www.akeana.com
About Canonical
Canonical, the publisher of Ubuntu, provides open source security, support and services. Our portfolio covers critical systems, from the smallest devices to the largest clouds, from the kernel to containers, from databases to AI. With customers that include top tech brands, emerging startups, governments and home users, Canonical delivers trusted open source for everyone. Learn more at canonical.com
Building on an existing partnership, the collaboration aims to drive adoption of the RISC-V RVA23 profile by delivering a seamless, out-of-the-box developer experience on server-class silicon.
The importance of RVA23 for server-class development
At Canonical, we believe 2026 will mark a shift for RISC-V, moving from ecosystem readiness to broad adoption across desktops, servers, and custom silicon. The RVA23 profile represents a significant step forward for RISC-V, defining a standardized set of mandatory extensions, including vector and hypervisor support, that software can reliably target across compliant hardware. For server-class applications in particular, this kind of baseline matters: it gives developers and enterprises the confidence to build and deploy without being tied to hardware-specific implementations.Akeana's Alpine Software Development Platform is built to the RVA23 profile, offering a server-class environment for developers to validate applications ahead of production silicon.
Pre-installing Ubuntu 26.04 LTS on Alpine boards extends this further, pairing a proven hardware baseline with the enterprise-grade Linux distribution most widely used in server environments. Together, they offer developers a complete, ready-to-use stack that removes setup overhead and accelerates the path from development to deployment.
“We are proud to be working with Canonical to bring Ubuntu 26.04 LTS to our Akeana 5000 series cores and our Alpine Server Class SoC test chip,.” says Rabin Sugumar, CEO of Akeana. Further stating “Ubuntu is a widely adopted , community-supported platform that provides meaningful software validation of our RVA23-compatible development environment. Ubuntu running on the Alpine Software Development Boards is a strong signal of the quality and maturity of what we've built.”.
"Akeana is demonstrating clear leadership with the Alpine Server Class SoC platform, built on the RVA23 profile," said Gordan Markus, Director of Silicon Alliances at Canonical. "We are excited to support this hardware with Ubuntu 26.04 LTS. These high-performance development boards are instrumental in helping us test and optimizse Ubuntu and our wider product portfolio for RISC-V. RISC-V is rapidly becoming a serious force in datacenter-class computing, and our collaboration with Akeana is a significant step toward raising ecosystem maturity and accelerating its global adoption."
About Akeana
Akeana is a driving force of change in semiconductor IP innovation and performance, on a mission to deliver world-class RISC-V-based compute, interconnect, and accelerator IP solutions. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, this venture-funded startup is dedicated to empowering customers with highly configurable technology and equitable licensing options, moving beyond the limitations of today's legacy vendors and architectures. Learn more at www.akeana.com
About Canonical
Canonical, the publisher of Ubuntu, provides open source security, support and services. Our portfolio covers critical systems, from the smallest devices to the largest clouds, from the kernel to containers, from databases to AI. With customers that include top tech brands, emerging startups, governments and home users, Canonical delivers trusted open source for everyone. Learn more at canonical.com