Synopsys Creates a High-performance ARC Core

Synopsys Creates a High-performance ARC Core
by Paul McLellan on 11-05-2013 at 10:00 am

ARC is a family of configurable processors. Originally it was a standalone company in the UK (what is it with the UK and processor cores?) spun out from Argonaut Software. The A in ARC stood for Argonaut originally. ARC International was acquired by Virage and then Virage was acquired by Synopsys so now it is part of Synopsys Designware… Read More


Fabless: The Transformation of the Semiconductor Industry

Fabless: The Transformation of the Semiconductor Industry
by Daniel Nenni on 11-03-2013 at 4:00 pm


As I have mentioned before, Paul McLellan and I are writing a book on the history of the fabless semiconductor industry. There is a preview available HERE, it will initially be sold as an e-book on SemiWiki and put into print early next year. Working with Paul McLellan and Beth Martin on this was an amazing experience. The research,… Read More


Webinar: IP Lifecycle Management: What is it, what problems does it solve?

Webinar: IP Lifecycle Management: What is it, what problems does it solve?
by Daniel Nenni on 11-03-2013 at 11:00 am

SoC’s are now dominated by IP blocks sourced either from 3rd parties or internal design teams. This means that IP is now critical to the success of the SoC, yet it is part of the design that teams have the least control over, or visibility into. Most design teams utilize at best ad-hoc methods to manage this IP, and the few that utilize… Read More


SEMICO Impact 2013 Next Wednesday

SEMICO Impact 2013 Next Wednesday
by Paul McLellan on 11-01-2013 at 5:54 pm

Semico’s IMPACT 2013 IP event is next Wednesday November 6th at the DoubleTree Hilton in San Jose.

Here’s what you get if you attend. Keynotes from:

  • Kurt Shuler of Arteris. Give him some hard questions about Qualcomm who have just acquired their technology and engineering team
  • Chris Rowen of Tensilica, recently acquired
Read More

Using OTP Memories for High-performance Video

Using OTP Memories for High-performance Video
by Paul McLellan on 11-01-2013 at 4:15 pm

One of the most demanding applications where semiconductors are used is in the various applications of digital video from tablet computers, to home entertainment. iPad with a retina display is already at high-definition (HD) resolution (2048×1536) and all indications are that video is racing towards what is known as 4K… Read More


ARM and the Internet of Things

ARM and the Internet of Things
by Paul McLellan on 10-31-2013 at 6:00 pm

I was at ARM TechCon earlier this week, and attended Simon Segars (the CEO of ARM for the last 4 months) keynote speech that opened the second day. A theme of his speech was that just as innovation continues to happen in so-called mature industries like automobiles, the same will happen in mobile. One particular area of focus for ARM… Read More


Qualcomm and Arteris: the CEO Speaks

Qualcomm and Arteris: the CEO Speaks
by Paul McLellan on 10-31-2013 at 5:25 pm

Arteris finally announced this morning, as rumored, that Qualcomm is acquiring “certain technology assets” and hired personnel formerly employed by Arteris. The financial terms were not disclosed.

I talked to Charlie Janac, the CEO, today. The first thing I asked him is why such a convoluted deal, I’ve never… Read More


ARM in Samsung 14nm FinFET

ARM in Samsung 14nm FinFET
by Paul McLellan on 10-30-2013 at 4:28 pm

I am at ARM TechCon today. One interesting presentation was made jointly between Samsung, Cadence and ARM themselves about developing physical libraries (ARM), a tool flow (Cadence) and test chips (Samsung). It was titled Samsung ARM and Cadence collaborate on the silicon-proven world first 14-nm FinFET Cortex-A7 ARM CPU and… Read More


Getting the Most Out of the ARM CoreLink™ NIC-400

Getting the Most Out of the ARM CoreLink™ NIC-400
by Daniel Payne on 10-28-2013 at 12:27 pm

SoC designers are attracted to ARM as an IP provider because of their popular offerings and growing ecosystem of EDA partners like Carbon Design Systems. At the upcoming ARM Techcon on October 31 this week in Santa Clara you’ll have an opportunity to hear a joint presentation from ARM and Carbon Design Systems on: Getting Read More


Open Letter from Sonics to Arteris

Open Letter from Sonics to Arteris
by Paul McLellan on 10-27-2013 at 2:00 pm

I don’t remember seeing an open letter from one EDA or IP company to another until today. Sonics have published an open letter to Charlie Janac, the CEO of Arteris. What seems to have happened is that Arteris have sold their assets to Qualcomm and the development team (which is based in France) and several AEs are already Qualcomm… Read More