3 ms·

Is there a chance of there being better / more automated tools?

• solnyshok 11y ago
  any Y startups in this area?
  • typon 11y ago
    These aren't simple 'apps'. These tools solve several NP complete problems, with decades of research in algorithms behind them. It is near impossible for a startup to compete with Cadence. Most startups are just plugins to Cadence that improve a tiny part of the flow, usually written in SKILL. And when they get good enough, Cadence acquires them.
• petra 11y ago
  I think this area is controlled by a 2-3 big companies so it depends how they enable and accept startups. Building all the tools is very challenging - very large investments, maybe in the billions.
  • nickpsecurity 11y ago
    Mentor, the little guy, was spending around $300-400 million a year on R&D. They also often acquire research and tooling from CompSci much to my irritation given I'm digging it up for OSS EDA purposes. So, yeah, ridiculously huge investments.
• williadc 11y ago
  The tools improve steadily, but the complexity of the designs themselves, and the process design rules are also increasing. Cadence and Synopsys (the two biggest EDA vendors) have both released major new versions of their automated place and route tools, with major improvements. However, 10nm presents new types of restrictions that need to be modeled and accounted for.