Programmable processors: Make them for all, or one?
By Jeff Bier, Courtesy of EE Times
Mar 12 2007 (9:00 AM)
These days, there are so many startups developing programmable processors that it feels like we're back in the bubble years, when anyone with a remotely viable processor design could secure venture funding.
A pivotal question for the current crop of startups is whether to offer their processors as flexible, general-purpose chips or as highly specialized, application-specific solutions. Should their product be a jack-of-all-trades or a master of one?
If the processor is complex or the programming tools iffy, vendors may be more successful if they offer a full application-specific solution--one that comes complete with robust application software and hardware reference designs. This way, their customers can enjoy the power of the new device without having to learn all the nitty-gritty details of the architecture and tools. But this approach requires deep application expertise and system design skills--and many processor companies don't have these kinds of resources. A narrow market focus can also be risky: There are fewer potential customers, and hence fewer shots at success.
To read the full article, click here
Related Semiconductor IP
- NFC wireless interface supporting ISO14443 A and B with EEPROM on SMIC 180nm
- DDR5 MRDIMM PHY and Controller
- RVA23, Multi-cluster, Hypervisor and Android
- HBM4E PHY and controller
- LZ4/Snappy Data Compressor
Related News
- Lattice Ships One Million MachXO2 Programmable Logic Devices
- Xilinx Tapes-Out First 20nm All Programmable Device with First UltraScale ASIC-class Programmable Architecture
- Xilinx's Zynq-7000 All Programmable SoCs Enable Mobilicom's Advanced Peer-to-Peer Software-Defined Radios
- Xilinx and its Ecosystem Expand All Programmable Abstractions to Empower More Designers and Accelerate Productivity up to 15X
Latest News
- CAST Releases First Dual LZ4 and Snappy Lossless Data Compression IP Core
- Arteris Wins “AI Engineering Innovation Award” at the 2025 AI Breakthrough Awards
- SEMI Forecasts 69% Growth in Advanced Chipmaking Capacity Through 2028 Due to AI
- eMemory’s NeoFuse OTP Qualifies on TSMC’s N3P Process, Enabling Secure Memory for Advanced AI and HPC Chips
- AIREV and Tenstorrent Unite to Launch Advanced Agentic AI Stack