Siemens Strengthens AI Chip Design Portfolio with Precision Innovations Acquisition

The increased complexity of semiconductor designs has driven chip makers to seek out AI to speed up the design process and make it more efficient. To take part in this trend, Siemens has signed a contract with electronic design automation (EDA) software provider for system-on-chip (SoC) design exploration, Precision Innovations, based in the USA. The acquisition will complement Siemens’ EDA portfolio with a set of tools that allows semiconductor teams to assess chip architectures and design trade-offs earlier in the development process. 

Early detection of potential problems helps engineers maximize power consumption, performance and silicon area while minimizing expensive redesign efforts and time to production.

Designed around an open-source OpenROAD framework, Precision Innovations’ software lets designers try different chip configurations with AI analysis. It is believed the technology will integrate with Siemens’ current digital design and verification technology and provide a seamless workflow across chip design, implementation and lifecycle management.

Industry context

In order to meet today’s demand for more powerful semiconductors, capable of delivering increasingly sophisticated chips for edge devices, high-performance computing, automotive electronics, and artificial intelligence, the semiconductor industry is facing increasing pressure. Systems-on-chip designs are increasingly complicated, and the traditional design method is too slow and time consuming to meet market needs.

In electronic design automation, intelligent software is now assisting engineers to consider thousands of design options, optimize layouts, and enhance productivity early in the design process, further driving the adoption of AI. More industry organizations are now looking toward “shift-left” design approaches that include designing and simulating at an earlier stage to minimize engineering requirements downstream.

This is a general trend of chip design, as seen in Siemens’ acquisition of Precision Innovations. Instead of adding to its software suite, the company is beefing up its AI capabilities to make it easier for semiconductor developers to cope with increasingly complex designs and shorter time to market. With a surge in the demand for advanced processors, AI driven design tools are likely to play a more prominent role in the semiconductor development ecosystem in the future.