Thalia and X-FAB Forge Strategic Partnership to Safeguard Supply and Accelerate IP Migration

In a move that underscores the semiconductor industry’s push toward resilient supply chains and agile innovation, Thalia Design Automation and X-FAB Silicon Foundries have announced a strategic partnership aimed at safeguarding supply continuity and accelerating intellectual property (IP) migration. This collaboration, revealed on September 23, 2025, comes at a pivotal moment when end-of-life (EOL) process technologies and geopolitical tensions are disrupting global chip production, forcing companies to rethink their design lifecycles. By integrating Thalia’s AI-driven migration tools with X-FAB’s specialty manufacturing expertise, the alliance promises to empower customers—particularly in automotive, industrial, and medical sectors—to transition designs swiftly without compromising performance or incurring prohibitive costs.

Thalia Design Automation, a UK-based venture-funded EDA (electronic design automation) specialist, has emerged as a key player in analog, mixed-signal, and RF IP solutions since its founding in 2012. Headquartered in Cwmbran, Wales, with additional facilities in Hyderabad, India, and Cologne, Germany, Thalia focuses on automating the complex task of porting legacy designs to newer processes. Its flagship AMALIA Platform leverages artificial intelligence to handle layout optimization, parameter extraction, and validation, slashing migration times from months to weeks. Backed by $2.7 million in funding in 2023, Thalia has positioned itself as a bridge between outdated silicon nodes and future-proof technologies, addressing a market gap where manual redesigns often lead to errors and delays. CEO Sowmyan Rajagopalan has emphasized the company’s mission: “In an era of supply volatility, our tools aren’t just about migration—they’re about survival and scalability.”

Complementing Thalia’s software prowess is X-FAB, a global leader in analog/mixed-signal semiconductor foundries. Established in 1992 as a spin-off from Siemens, the Erfurt, Germany-based group operates as a pure-play foundry, fabricating custom chips without competing in end markets. With fabrication sites in Germany, Malaysia, the US, and Canada, X-FAB specializes in mature process nodes (0.35µm to 1µm) tailored for harsh-environment applications like power management, sensors, and MEMS devices. Serving over 200 customers worldwide, the company reported steady growth in its 2024 Investor Day, highlighting a focused strategy on three technology pillars: high-voltage, RF, and silicon carbide. X-FAB’s emphasis on long-term support for legacy processes makes it an ideal partner for migration efforts, as it helps clients avoid the pitfalls of abrupt supplier shifts.

At the heart of this partnership is a symbiotic integration: Thalia will access X-FAB’s comprehensive Process Design Kits (PDKs), enabling the AMALIA Platform to be fine-tuned for X-FAB’s diverse portfolio of specialty technologies. This allows for automated, silicon-proven porting of analog and mixed-signal IPs, ensuring designs retain critical metrics like noise margins, power efficiency, and thermal stability during transitions. Customers benefit from reduced engineering overhead—traditional migrations can cost millions and take up to a year—while gaining qualification-ready outputs that accelerate time-to-market by 50-70%, according to Thalia’s internal benchmarks.

The strategic value extends beyond technical efficiencies. In an industry reeling from the 2021-2023 chip shortage and ongoing US-China trade frictions, this alliance fortifies supply chain resilience. By offering a “second-source” migration pathway, it mitigates risks from EOL announcements, which affect up to 30% of legacy designs annually. For X-FAB, it bolsters customer retention; as COO Damien Macq noted, “This partnership enhances customer confidence, securing long-term supply and supporting the full lifecycle of our specialty technologies.” Rajagopalan echoed this sentiment: “Combining our AI automation with X-FAB’s manufacturing excellence lets customers adapt to market shifts while unlocking advanced process benefits.”

Broader implications ripple across the semiconductor ecosystem. As electric vehicles, 5G infrastructure, and IoT devices demand ever-reliable analog components, partnerships like this could standardize migration practices, potentially inspiring similar tie-ups with other foundries like GlobalFoundries or TSMC. Analysts predict the IP migration market will grow to $5 billion by 2030, driven by AI tools that democratize access to advanced nodes. For smaller fabless firms, often squeezed by big-tech dominance, Thalia-X-FAB provides a lifeline to innovate without starting from scratch.

Ultimately, this collaboration exemplifies proactive adaptation in a volatile sector. By prioritizing supply security and migration speed, Thalia and X-FAB not only protect their partners’ bottom lines but also pave the way for sustainable growth. As supply chains evolve, expect more such alliances to emerge, ensuring the analog world remains robust amid digital disruption.