DENSO, a global leader in automotive technology, has signed a development license agreement with United States startup Quadric.inc to jointly develop artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors designed specifically for automotive applications, neural processing units (NPUs). This partnership marks an important step forward for the two companies in advancing the development of intelligent and autonomous driving technologies.
Content of cooperation
Under the agreement, DENSO will acquire the intellectual property core license for Quadric's Chimera GPNPU (General Purpose Neural Processing Unit) and co-develop NPU for automotive semiconductors with Quadric. With the development of autonomous driving and connected car technology, vehicles need to process large amounts of information in real time from on-board sensors, vehicle-to-vehicle communication, and cloud communication. As a result, the performance of automotive SoCs (system-on-chips) that can process large amounts of information at high speed and high efficiency is becoming increasingly important.
Technical features:
DENSO's RISC-V-based processor IP is compliant with ISO26262 ASIL D standards and is ideal for safety-critical automotive applications. With the advancement of vehicle intelligence, AI will become a key factor in determining the value of vehicles. Quadric's Chimera GPNPU has a unique architecture that enables matrix and vector operations as well as scalar (control) code to be handled in the same execution pipeline. This flexibility to handle diverse computing tasks makes it suitable for a wide range of AI functions. In addition, by using Chimera GPNPU, automotive system developers can add proprietary AI features to their products in the future. In addition, RISC-V processor IP has a very promising application in the automotive industry, and according to Omdia's forecast, RISC-V-based processor shipments will grow by nearly 50% annually between 2024 and 2030, reaching 17 billion processor shipments by 2030. Of these, 46% is expected to be used in industrial applications, while the automotive segment is growing at the fastest pace, with an expected annual growth rate of 66%.
Pictured: Denso partners with United States startups (Source: AutoTech News)
Objectives of the collaboration
Through the joint development of new semiconductor IP (NPUs), DENSO and Quadric aim to contribute to the realization of automotive SoCs that can flexibly respond to changes in AI trends, and to continue to adapt from product development to post-launch. At the same time, the two companies are also committed to promoting the development of highly secure autonomous/advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) products. In addition, DENSO and Quadric will continue to support evolving mobility needs through the development of semiconductor technology.
Hiroshi Kondo, head of DENSO's Mobile Electronics Business Group, said, "By leveraging our system development capabilities and broad technology portfolio, DENSO will advance systems that connect vehicles to society. By doing so, we will address complex societal issues including achieving carbon neutrality, promoting a circular economy, and eliminating traffic fatalities. One of the businesses we are strengthening is semiconductors, which are the foundation for advancing the intelligent computing infrastructure for vehicles. We have high hopes for the development of automotive semiconductor IP that can flexibly respond to AI trends and has low power consumption using Quadric's Chimera GPNPU. ”
The collaboration between DENSO and Quadric is an example of the automotive industry's collaboration in the field of AI and semiconductors, boding well for the future of automobiles to be smarter and safer. Through this collaboration, the two companies will work together to advance the automotive industry and contribute to the realization of safer and smarter mobility solutions. With the continuous development and popularization of autonomous driving technology, high-performance, low-power AI semiconductors will become a hot product in the market. The partnership between Denso and Quadric will not only help drive the development and adoption of this technology, but will also deliver significant commercial returns for both parties.
