NetSpeed and UltraSoC partner to accelerate development time for complex SoCs

Cambridge, UK, and San Jose, Calif., USA, October 26, 2017—NetSpeed Systems Inc., the supplier of on-chip network IP that is streamlining SoC design, and UltraSoC, the leader in embedded analytics technology, announced today that the companies have teamed up to accelerate the time from concept to system validation for complex SoCs. The two companies have integrated their solutions, including UltraSoC monitors, debug ports, and analytics, to work seamlessly with NetSpeed infrastructure.

A joint webinar on 2 November will provide more details of the technology behind the collaboration.

In the era of heterogeneous system architectures, SoCs have moved from CPU-centric design to system-centric design. This requires a different approach that focusses on the end-application and takes into account factors such as dynamically changing traffic profiles and varying workloads early in the process. This approach requires greater insight into the interactions among the various subsystems and components on the chip itself.

UltraSoC’s embedded IP enables designers to create an on-chip infrastructure that non-intrusively monitors a chip’s behavior, both hardware and software. It is designed to give engineering teams a holistic view “inside” SoCs and help get designs working quickly and reliably. In development, this IP provides designers with an intimate understanding of the interactions between on-chip processor blocks, custom logic, and system software. UltraSoC IP also makes it easier to integrate the device into end-products with benefits in terms of safety, security and performance. It enables analytics, forensics, and optimization features that provide continual analysis, even after the product has been shipped to the end customer.

"Today's SoCs, particularly those used in the most demanding applications including automotive, hyperscale computing, and mixed reality, rely on a flawless and efficient interconnect such as NetSpeed's coherent on-chip network IP," said Rupert Baines, UltraSoC CEO. "The integration of UltraSoC's monitoring and analytics capability with NetSpeed's interconnect gives chip architects and designers an unprecedented ability to quickly understand how ultra-complex SoCs behave. This can have a dramatic effect on development schedules and budgets by reducing engineering time and effort, and getting high quality products out much faster."

The two companies already have a number of mutual customers, one of which is developing a very sophisticated SoC with the support of UK-based IC design services consultancy Sondrel. Kevin Steptoe, VP of Engineering at Sondrel, commented on the partnership: "Traditional SoC design techniques are struggling in the modern world of very complex heterogeneous many-core designs. Netspeed's NoC architecture enables us to very efficiently develop a powerful interconnect, with certainty that performance is guaranteed by design. Meanwhile, UltraSoC complements this with their rich system-level analytics, which dramatically eases customer software and hardware integration."

“We are excited to be working with UltraSoC in providing this joint solution,” said Sundari Mitra, CEO and co-founder of NetSpeed. “NetSpeed prides itself on providing system level solutions and through this collaboration, we hope to ease pre- and post-silicon validation for many of our customers.”

The Netspeed and UltraSoC webinar entitled: Debug, Analytics, NoC, and beyond… Exploring uncharted galaxies of interconnects! Will take place on November 2, at 17:00 GMT (UK time). To see more details of the webinar and to register for the event use this link.

About NetSpeed Systems
NetSpeed Systems provides scalable, coherent on-chip network IPs to SoC designers for a wide range of markets from mobile to high-performance computing and networking. NetSpeed's on-chip network platform delivers significant time-to-market advantages through a system-level approach, a high level of user-driven automation and state-of-the-art algorithms. NetSpeed Systems was founded in 2011 and is led by seasoned executives from the semiconductor and networking industries. The company is funded by top-tier investors from Silicon Valley. It is based in San Jose, California and has additional research and development facilities in Asia. For more information, visit www.netspeedsystems.com.

About UltraSoC

UltraSoC is an independent provider of SoC infrastructure that enables rapid development of embedded systems based on advanced SoC devices. The company is headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. For more information visit www.ultrasoc.com