SiPearl signs a major licensing agreement with Arm for the development of its first-generation of microprocessors

Maisons-Laffitte, France, 21 April 2020 – SiPearl, the company that is designing the high-performance, low-power microprocessor for the European exascale supercomputer, has signed a major technological licensing agreement with Arm, the global semiconductor IP provider. The agreement will enable SiPearl to benefit from the high-performance, secure, and scalable next-generation Arm® Neoverse™ platform, codenamed ‶Zeusʺ, as well as leverage the robust software and hardware Arm ecosystem.

Taking advantage of the Arm “Zeus” platform, including Arm’s POP™ IP, on advanced FinFET² technology enables SiPearl to accelerate its design and ensure outstanding reliability for a very high-end offering, in terms of both computing power and energy efficiency, and be ready to launch its first generation of microprocessors in 2022.

SiPearl will be moving forward with the joint project of the 27 academic and industrial members of the European Processor Initiative³ (EPI), the consortium selected by the European Union to support the development of the European microprocessor. Based on a roadmap that is closely aligned with the European Union’s goals, SiPearl and its solutions will help drive the development of the European market for high performance computing (HPC), as well as its applications such as artificial intelligence and connected mobility. It will enable Europe to ensure its technological sovereignty and independence to meet a growing range of increasingly complex strategic challenges: research, health, weather forecasting, energy, defence, chemicals, engineering, cybersecurity, and smart cities.

“Arm Neoverse platforms are committed to enable the infrastructure for a world of a trillion connected devices, providing a foundation for our ecosystem to build products spanning edge to cloud and beyond to high performance computing,” said Chris Bergey, SVP and GM, Infrastructure Line of Business, Arm. “SiPearl’s use of the next-generation ‘Zeus’ platform for a power-efficient, yet high-performing solution aligns perfectly with the Neoverse design principles and we look forward to collaborating with SiPearl on their first-generation solutions.”

“We would like to thank the teams from Arm for the confidence and trust that they have shown in us with this major license. It will enable us to gain nearly 10 years of development and position us as a major player from the outset. Thanks to the Arm Neoverse “Zeus” platform and the intellectual property components developed by our partners from the European Processor Initiative consortium, our first generation of microprocessors will combine supercomputing power with outstanding energy efficiency and backdoor-free security. This will ensure that they are effectively positioned to support European supercomputers with their transition to exascale”, concluded Philippe Notton, SiPearl’s CEO and founder.

About SiPearl

Created by Philippe Notton, SiPearl is the company that is bringing to life the European Processor Initiative (EPI) project, designing the high-performance, low-power microprocessor for the European exascale supercomputer.

This new generation of microprocessors will enable Europe to set out its technological sovereignty on the strategic markets for high performance computing, artificial intelligence and connected mobility.

SiPearl will develop and market its solutions through close collaboration with its 26 partners from the EPI - scientific community, supercomputing centres and leading names from the IT, electronics and automotive sectors - which are its stakeholders and future clients.

SiPearl is supported by the European Union⁴.

¹ One billion billion calculations per second.

² FinFET is the current semiconductor direction to build 3D device by having a fin-shaped device structure.

³ The EPI’s members are: Atos, Barcelona Supercomputing Center, BMW Group, French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), Chalmers, Cineca, E4 Computer Engineering, Elektrobit, ETH Zürich, Extoll, FORTH, Fraunhofer ITWM, Genci, Infineon Technologies, Jülich, Kalray, KIT, Menta, Prove & Run, Semidynamics Technology Services, SiPearl, ST Microelectronics, SURFsara, Technico Lisboa, University of Bologna, University of Pisa, University of Zagreb.

⁴ This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under specific grant agreement no.826647.