• ACQUISITION EXPANDS XCELERATOR PORTFOLIO AND CREATES DATA-DRIVENPRODUCT LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS FOR SYSTEM-ON-CHIP (SOC)
* Integration of cybersecurity, functional safety, and the managementof complexity can enhance product quality, safety, and time-to-revenueacross industries ranging from automotive and factory automation tohigh- performance computing
Siemens has signed an agreement to acquire Cambridge, UK-based UltraSoCTechnologies Ltd., a provider of instrumentation and analytics solutionsthat put intelligent monitoring, cybersecurity and functional safety
capabilities into the core hardware of system-on-chip (SoC). Siemensplans to integrate UltraSoC’s technology into the Xcelerator portfolio[3] as part of Mentor’s Tessent(tm) software [4] product suite. Theaddition of UltraSoC to Siemens enables a unified data-driveninfrastructure that can enhance product quality, safety andcybersecurity, and the creation of a comprehensive solution to helpsemiconductor industry customers overcome key pain points includingmanufacturing defects, software and hardware bugs, device early-failureand wear-out, functional safety, and malicious attacks.
“Siemens’ acquisition of UltraSoC means that for the first time ourcustomers can access not just design-for-test, but a comprehensive’Design for Lifecycle Management’ solution for system-on-chips,including functional safety, security and optimization,” says BradyBenware, Tessent Vice President and General Manager, Siemens DigitalIndustries Software. “By utilizing design augmentation to detect,mitigate and eliminate risks throughout the SoC lifecycle, customers canradically improve time-to-revenue, product quality & safety, andprofitability. UltraSoC has a fast-growing business and impressivecustomer list and, as part of Siemens, can complement Tessent to createa truly unique offering in the market.”
UltraSoC is a pioneer of embedding monitoring hardware into complex SoCsto enable “fab-to-field” analytics capabilities designed to acceleratesilicon bring-up, optimize product performance, and confirm that devicesare operating “as designed” for functional safety and cybersecuritypurposes. Tessent is a market leader in SoC design-for-test (DFT)solutions, and has established strengths in the field of automotivefunctional safety via its Tessent Safety Ecosystem [5]. These two highlycomplementary offerings are the foundation of a complete package ofsolutions, encompassing semiconductor design and production, functionalsafety, cybersecurity, and functional optimization of products in the
field.
The combination of Siemens and UltraSoC technology can benefit theentire semiconductor product lifecycle, including structural,electrical, and functional capabilities of SoCs. It also supportsSiemens’ comprehensive digital twin with UltraSoC providing monitoringof the real device.
“This acquisition accelerates UltraSoC’s vision at a much larger scalewith the incredible team, assets, industry know-how and footprint ofSiemens,” said Rupert Baines, CEO, UltraSoC. “Being part of one of theworld’s foremost technology companies will allow UltraSoC to betterserve our customers by accelerating R&D, leveraging a much larger poolof go-to-market resources, and an enormous global infrastructure. It hasbeen clear since our initial meeting that UltraSoC and Siemens share avision on how technology businesses can transform their operationsend-to- end, from design conception to field deployment and we areexcited to join the community.”
UltraSoC’s products are widely used in the automotive, high-performancecomputing, storage and semiconductor industries. The company wasrecently selected as a participant in the DARPA AISS [6](AutomaticImplementation of Secure Silicon) program; and is a member of theSecure-CAV [7]consortium, an ambitious collaborative project that aimsto improve the safety and security of tomorrow’s connected andautonomous vehicles (CAVs). Siemens’ acquisition of UltraSoC is due toclose in the fourth quarter of Siemens’ fiscal year 2020. Terms of thetransaction were not disclosed.
