Bringing Silicon Agility to Life with eFPGA and Intel’s 18A Technology

By Brian Faith

May 15, 2025

At QuickLogic, we’ve always believed in delivering silicon solutions that don’t just address the needs of today, but tomorrow’s as well. At the recent Intel Foundry Direct Connect 2025 Conference, I had the opportunity to share how we’re doing just that with over a thousand attendees. 

Through our partnership with Intel, we are very proud to say that we have delivered the world’s first embedded FPGA (eFPGA) technology on their cutting-edge 18A process node.  Now, ASIC and SoC developers can easily integrate QuickLogic’s eFPGA IP into their devices built on this advanced node.

Secure, Reliable and Ruggedized eFPGA Solutions

Our mission is to bring secure, reliable, and ruggedized eFPGA solutions to critical infrastructure sectors like aerospace, defense, automotive, and next-gen telecommunications. These markets demand not only performance and low power, but also flexibility, long lifecycle support, and rapid time-to-market. That’s where our eFPGA technology truly shines.

What sets eFPGA IP apart is its re-configurability. Unlike the fixed-function hardware found in traditional ASICs, SoCs and standard products, our solutions can adapt throughout the lifecycle of a product. That flexibility is essential in an environment where system requirements evolve rapidly. And when security is non-negotiable, our obfuscation capabilities enable running secure algorithms in an unsecured environment.

Delivering Low Latency and Power Efficiency through Flexibility

We’re also addressing the need for low latency and power efficiency through customizable hardware accelerators. This makes our technology a perfect fit for high-performance applications in sectors that need our flexibility but simply cannot afford to compromise on power, speed, or reliability.

Integrating eFPGA into ASICs and SoCs enhances flexibility at the silicon level—supporting critical components like CPUs, memory controllers, and transceivers. And thanks to our Australis™ IP generator, we’re able to rapidly deliver custom eFPGA IP that’s optimized for each use case. This tool not only improves time-to-market but also reduces development costs, which is critical for customers operating in highly competitive and budget-sensitive environments.

Working with Intel Foundry’s 18A process and PowerVia technology adds even more capabilities to our offering. PowerVia’s backside power delivery improves performance by minimizing IR drop and congestion, while also enabling up to a 30% reduction in area. That’s a game-changer in SoC design where every nanometer counts.

eFPGA Technology and Chiplets

eFPGA technology is also well suited to chiplet implementation, which we see gaining momentum.  Unfortunately, so far chiplets have been a technology for a handful of vertically integrated companies.  That’s why we’re pleased join with Intel as a member of their Foundry Chiplet Alliance.  Our plan is to collaborate with others in the Alliance to define and implement chiplets that can be used solve real-world problems for the whole industry.

Looking Forward…

At QuickLogic, we’re proud to be a trusted partner to customers building the future of critical infrastructure. By combining our eFPGA expertise with Intel’s advanced manufacturing capabilities, we’re not just keeping up with the pace of innovation—we’re helping set it.  Because in a world that never stops evolving, silicon agility isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity.