eSilicon @ #51 DAC – Why is a Chip Company at DAC?

eSilicon is a fabless chip company that is credited with starting the fabless ASIC movement. You can read more about them in the ASIC chapter of SemiWiki’s new book on the fabless semiconductor industry. But why would a fabless ASIC company come to DAC?

At one level, eSilicon starts where EDA technology ends – taking a taped out chip to volume production, managing yield, quality and delivery logistics across a global supply chain.

But it looks like there’s more to the story. eSilicon introduced an automated quoting capability for multi-project wafers (MPWs) a few months ago. It allows the user to book a slot on an MPW in literally minutes. Paul McLellan wrote about his experience using this application on his iPhone here. It seems like there are more new announcements in the business process automation area from eSilicon. They’re not saying what they are yet, but I think it will be interesting to see what’s being demonstrated at the eSilicon booth (512).

eSilicon has a lineup of suite presentations that explain the various parts of their unique business model. You can check those out and pre-register for an appointment here. You can get the big picture of all eSilicon’s DAC activities here.

eSilicon’s model relies heavily on ecosystem partners and they’ll be interviewing some of them in their booth as well. Note that I’ll be there at 10:30 each day to discuss SemiWiki’s book on the fabless industry and talk about my recent trip to the Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca where I got the opportunity to get up close and personal with the Flying Lizard Motorsports team as they ran an American LeMans Race. eSilicon is a sponsor for this race team. Note that eSilicon is handing out free copies of the SemiWiki fabless book to those who attend an activity in their booth. I think it’s a way better giveaway than a squeaky toy, but I might be biased.

As a final note – don’t forget to come to the networking reception at DAC on Tuesday at 6PM at the Esplanade Foyer in Moscone Center. The reception is sponsored by SemiWiki, and Paul McLellan and I will be signing copies of our book for the first 300 attendees. The books are provided courtesy of eSilicon of course.

About eSilicon
eSilicon, a leading independent semiconductor design and manufacturing solutions provider, delivers custom ICs and custom IP to OEMs, independent device manufacturers (IDMs), fabless semiconductor companies (FSCs) and wafer foundries through a fast, flexible, lower-risk path to volume production. eSilicon serves a wide variety of markets including the communications, computer, consumer, industrial products and medical segments.

About DAC The Design Automation Conference (DAC) is recognized as the premier event for the design of electronic circuits and systems, and for electronic design automation (EDA) and silicon solutions. A diverse worldwide community representing more than 1,000 organizations attends each year, represented by system designers and architects, logic and circuit designers, validation engineers, CAD managers, senior managers and executives to researchers and academicians from leading universities. Close to 60 technical sessions selected by a committee of electronic design experts offer information on recent developments and trends, management practices and new products, methodologies and technologies. A highlight of DAC is its exhibition and suite area with approximately 200 of the leading and emerging EDA, silicon, intellectual property (IP) and design services providers. The conference is sponsored by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), the Electronic Design Automation Consortium (EDA Consortium), and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and is supported by ACM’s Special Interest Group on Design.

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