Keysight EDA (PathWave Design)

Type: Public (division of Keysight Technologies, Inc.)
Industry: Electronic Design Automation (EDA), Simulation, Circuit & System Design
Founded: 1983 (as EEsof; incorporated into Keysight in 2014)
Headquarters: Santa Rosa / Santa Clara, California, United States
Parent Company: Keysight Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: KEYS)
Employees: Integrated into Keysight’s software segment (~6,000 software engineers)
Revenue Contribution: Part of Keysight’s Design & Simulation business unit

🧩 Overview

Keysight EDA, branded under PathWave Design (formerly EEsof EDA), provides an integrated suite of tools for RF/microwave circuit design, high-speed digital simulation, device modeling, electromagnetic analysis, and system-level design. These solutions are widely used in high-frequency and bandwidth-intensive applications, including 5G/6G, AI/ML data centers, aerospace, and high-speed digital interconnects. Keysight combines decades of test & measurement expertise with advanced simulation workflows to support designers from silicon to system.

🛠 Products & Solutions

Keysight EDA offers a comprehensive set of tools across multiple domains:

⚙️ Circuit & RF Design

• Advanced Design System (ADS): Premier platform for RF/microwave and high-speed digital designs, combining schematic capture, layout, DRC, circuit simulation (harmonic balance, transient), and integrated EM simulation via Momentum. Keysight+10Wikipedia+10Keysight+10Keysight+6Wikipedia+6Keysight+6

• Genesys (RF Synthesis): Focused on circuit/system synthesis for RF/microwave subsystems.

• GoldenGate (RFIC Design): Specialized for RFIC and mixed-signal simulations.

🌍 Electromagnetic & Multiphysics Analysis

• EMPro: 3D electromagnetic simulator enabling EM-circuit co-simulation.

• ADS RFPro & Electrothermal tools: Provide co-simulation for electrothermal effects and signal integrity analysis. Wikipedia+4Keysight+4Keysight+4

🌐 System-Level & Digital Twins

• SystemVue: Enables block-level and system-level modeling for RF communications, radar, non-terrestrial networks (NTN), and satellite links. Keysight+1Wikipedia+1

📊 Device Modeling & Characterization

• IC‑CAP, Model Builder (MBP), Model QA, and WaferPro: End-to-end semiconductor device modeling, characterization, automation, and QA. Supports accurate PDK generation and tuning.

🛡 Security & Signal Integrity

• Inspector SC2: Pre-silicon side-channel vulnerability analysis.

• EP‑Scan, Chiplet PHY Designer: Tools for signal integrity and interconnect validation in chiplet and PCB environments.

🔄 History & Corporate Structure

• 1983: EEsof founded; developed high-frequency circuit simulators like Touchstone and Momentum.

• Acquired by HP, then Agilent, before being spun off as part of Keysight Technologies in 2014.

• 2019–2025: Rebranded under the PathWave Design umbrella, integrating AI-capable workflows and modern integrated environments.

• Late 2024 / 2025 Releases:

  • EDA 2025 suite brought AI/ML enhancements, integrated Python APIs, faster digital twin generation, and expanded RF interoperability for UCIe, PCIe, USB, etc.

  • EDA 2024 release introduced RF System Explorer (ADS + SystemVue), Digital Pre-Distortion tools for power amplifiers, and SATCOM-specific enhancements.

🚀 Key Features & Differentiators

• Shift‑Left Design Philosophy: Encourages early validation across domains—circuits, EM, electrothermal, system architecture—enabling first-pass design success.

• Open, Python-Enabled Workflows: Facilitates data integration, automation, and AI/ML workflow creation.

• Deep Experience in Measurement Science: Tools are built on Keysight’s 80+ years of test and measurement heritage, ensuring high physical fidelity.

📊 Market Segments & Use Cases

• Wireless Communications: 5G/6G RF subsystem design, antenna and PA optimization.

• High‑Speed Digital: SerDes, UCIe, USB, PCIe channel simulation and signal integrity validation.

• Semiconductor Device Modeling: Powered by IC‑CAP and PDK workflows.

• Aerospace/Defense & Satellite Communications: SystemVue supports radar, phased arrays, and NTN link design.

• Quantum Circuit Design: Through QuantumPro within ADS, enabling superconducting qubit design, EM/flux modeling, and nonlinear circuit simulation.

👥 Leadership & Organization

• Part of Keysight Technologies, a public S&P 500 company (traded NYSE: KEYS).

• Led by internal software leadership such as Niels Faché, VP & General Manager, Design & Simulation, with commitment to R&D and integration across systems and test.

📈 Strategic Vision

Keysight EDA is positioning for the future with:

• AI/ML-enriched workflows and high-performance computation for digital twins and RF system optimization.

• Deep integration of measurement data into simulation, accelerating design-space exploration and standard compliance automation.

• Supporting advanced interconnect standards (e.g., UCIe chiplet architectures) and secure design validation.

• Expansion into emerging applications like quantum hardware design, broadening EDA beyond traditional scopes.

📋 Summary Table