InsideChips.VenturesTM Tracking Fabless, IP & Design-House Startups

Volume 6, Number 5 May 2005 Business Microscope

Semiconductor Forecast ... Each year, analyzing capital spending and fab capacity trends, InsideChips bestows a Semiconductor Forecast researching ASIC markets and technologies, and Award to the best analyst forecaster after actual following emerging markets for ICs such as cellular results are posted by the SIA. The purpose of the phones. Feldhan is the founder of SEMICO, one of program is to identify and recognize top analysts the several market research boutiques that spun out whose methodology and experience result in of In-Stat during the 1980s. SEMICO is a consistently accurate forecasting. semiconductor-centric market research firm whose Based on forecasts made in Q4 2003, the award services include consulting, reports, events and for the best semiconductor forecast made by a market newsletters. research firm for 2004 is shared by Bill McClean of The most conservative forecasts for 2004 were IC Insights and Jim Feldhan of SEMICO Research. Both analysts 17%, 18% and 19% made by iSupply, IDC, and SIA, respectively. forecasted +27% growth for 2004, which came in very close to VLSI Research was most optimistic at 32%. The semiconductor the actual +28% growth over 2003 as announced by the forecasts for 2004 average 25.6%. Semiconductor Industry Association. McClean also won This year, the industry has cooled from last year’s double- InsideChips’ forecast award for his semiconductor predictions digit pace. The average forecast compiled from all analysts is a for 2002. modest 1.4%. Prior to forming IC Insights, McClean worked at ICE Readers can view the results of last year’s forecasts on Corporation (acquired by Chipworks). He specializes in tracking InsideChips’ download page at www.insidechips.com/ global economic conditions, developing IC market forecasts, downloads.htm.

: Business Microscope ...... 1

e Public Company Spotlight ...... 3

u Semiconductor Stock Index ...... 3

s Stock Market Scan...... 4

s Finance: News, Funding and Acquisitions ...... 5 i

Analyzing the Analysts ...... 10

s Emerging Ventures ...... 12 i

Agreements and Marketing Alliances ...... 20 h

ASICs, IP and Design Services ...... 21 t

The Fast Track ... People & Organizations ...... 22

n Companies Mentioned In This Issue ...... 24 i

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Table 1 -- Current Market Capitalization of Publicly Held Semiconductor Companies

Company Symbol Market Cap Company Symbol Market Cap Intel INTC 144,100.0 Vitesse Semiconductor VTSS 500.9 Texas Instruments TXN 41,900.0 Genesis Microchip Del GNSS 460.1 Motorola MOT 38,500.0 TriQuint Semiconductor TQNT 454.6 TSMC TSM 38,100.0 Symmetricom SYMM 437.0 STMicroelectronics STM 14,000.0 Adaptec ADPT 432.9 Analog Devices ADI 12,800.0 Trident Microsystems TRID 412.7 Maxim Integrated Products MXIM 12,400.0 O2Micro International OIIM 398.4 United Microelectronics UMC 11,400.0 Zoran ZRAN 397.8 Linear Technology LLTC 11,100.0 Audiocodes AUDC 391.5 Xilinx XLNX 10,200.0 Actel ACTL 377.8 Marvell Technology MRVL 9,200.0 Ixys SYXI 372.1 Broadcom BRCM 8,000.0 Pixelworks PXLW 368.2 Altera ALTR 7,300.0 Cirrus Logic CRUS 335.3 Infineon Technologies IFX 6,800.0 Silicon Storage Technology SSTI 318.0 National Semiconductor NSM 6,700.0 Mips Technologies MIPS 294.2 Advanced Micro Devices AMD 5,900.0 PLX Technology PLXT 275.4 Micron Technology. MU 5,900.0 Standard Microsystems SMSC 268.1 Microchip Technology MCHP 5,400.0 Echelon ELON 255.2 SanDisk SNDK 5,000.0 Integrated Silicon Solution ISSI 226.6 AtI Technologies ATYT 4,000.0 Pericom Semiconductor PSEM 216.9 Nvidia NVDA 3,800.0 Virage Logic VIRL 211.7 QLogic QLGC 3,400.0 Supertex SUPX 203.2 International Rectifier IRF 2,900.0 Sigma Designs SIGM 191.6 ARM Hldgs Plc ARMHY 2,600.0 ESS Technology ESST 184.4 Intersil ISIL 2,400.0 Monolithic Sys Technology MOSY 179.4 LSI Logic LSI 2,100.0 Zarlink Semiconductor ZL 173.1 Tessera Technologies TSRA 1,700.0 Nanogen NGEN 152.4 Vishay Intertechnology VSH 1,700.0 Transmeta Del TMTA 136.7 Cypress Semiconductor CY 1,600.0 TranSwitch TXCC 126.3 Fairchild Semiconductor FCS 1,600.0 White Electr Designs WEDC 121.5 Silicon Laboratories SLAB 1,600.0 Tower Semiconductor TSEM 109.5 PMC-Sierra PMCS 1,500.0 Sirenza Microdevices SMDI 103.9 Chartered Semiconductor CHRT 1,400.0 Aware AWRE 102.1 Integrated Circuit Sys ICST 1,400.0 Dialog Semiconductor DLGS 101.4 Rambus RMBS 1,400.0 California Micro Devices CAMD 92.8 Semtech SMTC 1,300.0 Metalink MTLK 88.8 Integrated Device Technology IDTI 1,200.0 Quicklogic QUIK 85.4 Agere Systems AGR.A 1,100.0 Hi/Fn HIFN 83.3 Sigmatel SGTL 1,100.0 Centillium Communications CTLM 81.5 Atmel ATML 1,000.0 8X8 EGHT 81.3 Microsemi MSCC 1,000.0 Catalyst Semiconductor CATS 80.5 AMIS Hldgs AMIS 973.1 Advanced Power Technology APTI 74.3 Siliconix SILI 969.3 Alliance Semiconductor ALSC 69.9 Applied Micro Circuits AMCC 850.3 Ramtron Intl RMTR 68.6 Omnivision Technologies OVTI 842.4 ANADIGICS ANAD 56.9 RF Microdevices RFMD 834.5 Micro Linear MLIN 55.7 On Semiconductor ONNN 812.7 RF Monolithics RFMI 47.4 Micrelorporated MCRL 757.1 Tripath Technology TRPH 44.4 DSP Group DSPG 708.0 Tvia TVIA 32.5 Macronix Intl MXICY 679.8 Simtek SRAM 32.1 Power Integrations POWI 669.9 Spectrum Signal Processing SSPI 24.8 Conexant Systems CNXT 624.8 NeoMagic NMGC 15.8 Lattice Semiconductor LSCC 556.7 Celeritek CLTK 10.6 Exar EXAR 529.9 DPAC Technologies DPAC 9.5 Logic Devices LOGC 9.3 Market Capitalization Data in Millions of Dollars Solitron Devices SODI 1.2

May 2005 Page 2 InsideChips.Ventures Public Company Spotlight

Hytek Eliminates Jobs Silicon Image Suffers Mass requirements, and no directors are serving Departure of Board Members on the audit committee of the board of Hytek Microsystems has reduced its directors. NASDAQ listing rules require workforce by nine employees, which After four members of Silicon Image’s that the audit committee be comprised of at represents an approximately 10% reduction board of directors resigned in late April, the least three independent directors. in head count. The majority of the company announced that founder David Lee Lee will continue to serve in his current terminated employees were dedicated to had decided not to stand for re-election to the capacity as an executive officer of Silicon the Medtronic work cell. In Jan. 2005, board at the 2005 annual shareholder meeting. Image and chairman of PanelLink Cinema, Medtronic notified Hytek that it would Lee’s decision followed the resignations a wholly owned subsidiary of the company. place no further purchase orders with Hytek, of Christopher Paisley, chairman of the The board also named Lee Chairman as it intended to develop an internal source board and member of the audit, Emeritus of Silicon Image for past of supply. Although Hytek reassigned compensation and governance and contributions. several of the work cell employees, the nominating committees; David Courtney, The company’s three remaining board company said it was unable to absorb all of chairman of the audit committee and member of directors are Steve Tirado, president and them into its current organizational of the governance and nominating CEO; CFO Darrel Slack, who was appointed structure. committee; Keith McAuliffe, chairman of to the board following the resignations; and In Feb. 2005, Hytek entered into a the compensation committee and member David Hodges, an independent director. merger agreement with Natel Engineering. of the audit and governance and nominating The companies expect to close the committees; and Richard Sanquini, member transaction during Q2 2005. The report of of the compensation and governance and Cirrus Logic to Divest independent auditors on Hytek’s Jan. 1, nominating committees. Video Product Line 2005, financial statements includes an Paisley and Courtney stated that they Cirrus Logic is divesting its digital video explanatory paragraph indicating there is were resigning due to a disagreement over product line assets to focus exclusively on its substantial doubt about Hytek’s ability to whether or not Lee should be re-nominated core high-precision analog, mixed-signal and continue as a going concern. to the company’s board of directors, and embedded ICs for audio and industrial Founded in 1974 and headquartered in McAuliffe said he resigned due to events applications. Revenue associated with the Carson City, Nev., Hytek specializes in surrounding that same issue. The company digital video product line in the third fiscal hybrid microelectronic circuits that are used said Sanquini resigned without stating a quarter, ending Dec. 25, 2004, was $3.1 in military applications, geophysical reason. million, representing 7% of total revenue. Cirrus Logic has retained Lehman Brothers exploration, medical instrumentation, As a result of the resignations, a majority as its exclusive financial advisor in connection satellite systems, industrial electronics, of the board of directors is not “independent” with a potential transaction involving the opto-electronics and other OEM as required by NASDAQ listing applications. digital video product line assets. Semiconductor Stock Index

Short Term Long Term

InsideChips.Ventures reports on and analyzes the semiconductor industry based on information obtained from sources generally available to the public, and from industry contacts. Although these sources are considered reliable, we cannot guarantee their accuracy. The opinions and views expressed herein reflect the judgment of HTE Research, Inc., and are subject to change. We welcome the views of subscribers on the content and analyses found in this report. HTE Research, Inc., and its editor(s) do not have any equity positions in the companies profiled in InsideChips.Ventures unless specially noted at the end of the profile.

May 2005 Page 3 InsideChips.Ventures Stock Market Scan

Cirrus Logic Maxim Integrated Products

Silicon Image Power Integrations

Rambus Omnivision Technologies

March 2004 Page 4 InsideChips.Ventures Finance: News, Funding and Acquisitions

eASIC Receives Additional Industrial, and Toshiba. Existing investors Exar Acquires Infineon’s Optical $7.5 Million 3i, GIMV and NIF Ventures also Networking Product Line participated. As follow-on to the previous investment Exar is acquiring a significant part of of $5 million in May 2004, Kleiner Perkins Elixent’s D-Fabrix reconfigurable Infineon Technologies’ Optical Networking Caufield & Byers (KPCB) and Vinod algorithm processing (RAP) technology (ON) Business Unit. The acquisition Khosla have provided eASIC with $7.5 reduces chip development costs by enabling includes assets relating to multi-rate TDM million in equity financing. the same device to be used for multiple framer products, Fiber Channel over applications. It does this without incurring SONET/SDH, Resilient Packet Ring (RPR), Founded in 1999, eASIC is a provider the size and power overheads of traditional as well as certain IP for Data Over SONET of configurable logic and structured ASIC programmable solutions. This is ideal for products. The companies expect the all- products. The company’s configurable logic the growing convergence of consumer cash transaction to close shortly. technology is aimed at dramatically reducing electronics devices as multiple applications the overall fabrication cost and time of can be realized on the same chip. The existing MetroMapper™ family of customized high-performance semicon- Ethernet over Sonet products will remain Contact: ductor chips. Its structured eASIC Ralph Weir, VP of marketing; Tel: +44 part of Infineon’s product portfolio. architecture enables rapid and low-cost (0)117 917 5762; www.elixent.com. The sale of the Optical Networking ASIC and SOC designs by using proven business unit is part of Infineon’s strategy to programmable logic fabric in conjunction Nortel Takes Equity Stake in Sasken streamline its business activities to focus on with single-via customizable segmented core markets in wireless and broadband routing. As single-via generates 10x higher Nortel has invested $10 million in Sasken access communication. In Feb. 2005, throughput of direct-write e-Beam Communication Technologies for an Infineon sold its fiber optics business to customization, it enables eASIC to offer undisclosed stake in Sasken’s fully diluted Finisar, although it retained its parallel optics NRE-free structured ASICs. equity. The two companies have also signed and fiber operations. Under the terms of Contact: an amendment to an existing services that agreement, Finisar issued 34 million Zvi Or-Bach, founder and CEO; Tel: 408 agreement under which they will continue shares (valued at approximately $50 million) 879-9400; www.easic.com. to work together to develop new software for the assets associated with the design, Siano Mobile Silicon Secures and deploy Nortel networking solutions. development and manufacture of all optical Series A Financing Sasken, a pioneer in telecom research transceiver products. Contacts: Israel-based Siano Mobile Silicon, a and development (R&D) outsourcing, has been a key supplier to Nortel since 1991, Peter Fischl, Infineon executive VP and CFO; startup developing mobile digital television Tel: +49 89 234 22404; www.infineon.com. (MDTV) receiver solutions, has closed its and is currently focused on supporting Ronald Guire, Exar CFO and executive VP; Series A funding of $11.5 million. Jerusalem Nortel’s GSM digital wireless and enterprise Tel: 510 668-7000; www.exar.com. Venture Partners led the round, which communications solutions. Sasken will also Provigent Ups Third Round included Walden Israel and Star Ventures. play a major role in training, technical support and other engineering services in of Financing to $10 Million Founded in June 2004 by a group of Nortel projects in India. Israeli entrepreneurs, Siano is developing Provigent has increased its third-round an all-CMOS, multi-standard, multi-band Sasken plans to use this investment to funding to $10 million, provided by the integrated receiver. The company is fuel its growth through acquisitions. company’s previous third-round investors: targeting the chip at cellular phones, laptop Established in 1989, Sasken offers a Sequoia Capital, Pitango Venture Capital, computers, portable video players, and combination of complementary IP software Magnum Communications Fund, Ascend similar portable consumer devices. components, R&D consultancy and software Technology Ventures, Delta Ventures, and services to semiconductor manufacturers, Andrew Viterbi, co-founder of Contact: QUALCOMM. Alon Ironi, CEO and president; Tel: +972 (9) network equipment companies, and global 8656993; www.siana-ms.com. wireless handset developers. Established in Provigent previously closed its third 1989, Sasken employs over 2,000 staff, round of financing in Sept. 2004 for $8 Elixent Attracts Strategic Investment operating from R&D centers in Bangalore million. The total amount raised thus far, from Panasonic, Toshiba and Pune, India, and has offices in Canada, including the additional $2 million in new Reconfigurable semiconductor China, Germany, Japan, Sweden, France, funding, stands at $21 million. the U.K. and the United States. company Elixent has closed a new round of Founded in Aug. 2000, Provigent is funding that, when complete, will total $15 Contact: developing algorithms and SOCs that million. This latest round includes a strategic Rajiv Mody, chairman and CEO; Tel: 91 80 address the fragmented, non-consumer, 2535 5501; www.sasken.com. investment from Panasonic Digital point-to-point (PTP) broadband wireless Concepts Center, the Silicon Valley-based market. Cellular backhaul, which links venture capital arm of Matsushita Electric

May 2005 Page 5 InsideChips.Ventures

cellular and wired networks, represents a Founded in 2000, TeraChip provides operations once it has completed its purchase major segment of this market. Another strong next-generation merchant switch fabrics for of the business from TriQuint. PTP market is fixed wireless transmission switch and router systems. TeraChip’s Contacts: networks, such as those that ILCECs use for switching solutions are optimized for Ralph Quinsey, TriQuint president and CEO; connecting their sites. Provigent’s third enterprise (LAN), storage (SAN) and metro Tel: 503 615-9000; www.triquint.com. target market is private wireless networks, (MAN) switching and server-blade systems. Ed Coringrato, CyOptics president and CEO; which are typically deployed by Tel: 610 336-5758; www.cyoptics.com. (See our profile of TeraChip in the March Larry Stuardi, MRA Group president; Tel: governmental agencies, as well as utilities 2003 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) 610 238-0500; www.mragroup.net. such as gas, electric, water and others. Contact: Akustica Raises Series B Funding Provigent’s first product, the PVG-310, Rod Kay, president and CEO; Tel: 650 320- is a single-chip modem that integrates all 8148; www.tera-chip.com. Akustica, a pioneer in acoustic SOC the PHY baseband functionality for solutions, has raised $15 million in a Series TriQuint Sells Optoelectronics broadband wireless transmission systems. B round of equity funding. Current investors Operations in Pennsylvania, Mexico All functions are implemented digitally and Rangos Investments and Mobius eliminate the need for external VCOs and TriQuint Semiconductor is selling its Technology Ventures co-led the round. loop filters. The company incorporated optoelectronics operations in Breinigsville, Akustica is commercializing two flexibility by making certain modem Pa., and Matamoros, Mexico, to CyOptics, MEMS-based innovations developed at parameters software programmable, an optical components manufacturer Carnegie Mellon Univ. by MEMS pioneer including data rates, modulation schemes headquartered in Lehigh Valley, Pa. The Kaigham (Ken) Gabriel and colleagues. and bandwidth. The startup has already asset sale includes the products, The company is enabling OEMs to replace achieved 20 design wins to date. manufacturing equipment, inventory, the microphones and speakers in mobile phones, (See our profile of Provigent in the Oct. Mexican entity, related IP rights and other hearing aids and other consumer electronic 2004 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) assets that constitute the operation that devices with its AkuSound acoustic MEMS manufactures indium phosphide (InP) Contact: SOCs. Gabriel, whom Forbes Magazine Dan Charash, CEO; Tel: 650 962-0183; optical chips and components for the optical called “the architect of the US MEMS www.provigent.com. networking market. Industry, is a co-founder and serves as CTO TriQuint’s total consideration from the and chairman. TeraChip Secures New Funding sale of the building and the business will be There are two primary classes of Switch fabrics provider TeraChip has approximately $32 million and will result in technology Akustica licensed and is raised $7.2 million in its latest funding a one-time gain of between $7 million and continuing to develop, both developed by round, led by Accel Partners and Benchmark $8 million. The company will also receive Gabriel and his students and colleagues at Capital. The company also appointed Rod a minority ownership share in CyOptics. CMU. The first is a unique acoustic MEMS Kay as president and CEO. TriQuint will continue to support current technology that functions as a transducer, TeraChip will use the funding to expand optical customers and products based on capturing and reproducing sounds with the its product portfolio and launch new sales gallium arsenide, which are not associated mechanical membrane inside of the chip. and marketing initiatives internationally. with the operations in Pennsylvania and The other technology the company The new funding will accelerate the Mexico. CyOptics plans to employ the vast licensed from CMU is CMOS completion of new products in TeraChip’s majority of TriQuint’s approximately 100 micromachining. Traditionally, achieving line of scalable switching solutions. The employees in Pennsylvania and large-scale MEMS production required a company plans to increase staff by 10% to approximately 150 employees in Mexico. heavy investment in proprietary and unique 20% over the next year. In a separate move, TriQuint is selling fabrication approaches; this has been one of Kay succeeds Micha Zeiger, TeraChip’s its nearly 850,000-square-foot opto- the major roadblocks to successful founding CEO, who becomes chairman of electronics facility and surrounding property commercialization of MEMS. As the the board of directors and CTO. Kay in Breinigsville, Pa., to Anthem Partners, beneficiary of CMU’s 10-year and $30- previously served as VP of marketing at an affiliate of MRA Group of Plymouth million investment in CMOS Ardent Communications, a voice-over- Meeting, Pa. MRA intends to transform the micromachining, Akustica will be able to packet startup acquired by Cisco Systems existing facility into an advanced technology leverage the world’s CMOS production in 1997. Following the acquisition by Cisco, center, featuring a combination of infrastructure. Kay held executive marketing and business- technology research and development, bio- (See our profile of Akustica in the Nov. development positions in Cisco’s Enterprise medical engineering, high-tech 2002 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) and Service Provider business segments. manufacturing, and a related education Earlier, Kay was VP of marketing at XLNT advancement and conference center. Contact: Ken Gabriel, chairman and CTO; Tel: 412 Designs (acquired by Intel) and Ascom CyOptics will lease approximately 90,000 390-1730; www.akustica.com. Timeplex. square feet of space in this facility for its

May 2005 Page 6 InsideChips.Ventures

SST Acquires Flash Memory support high-power applications ranging in Morpho Technologies Closes Technology Company frequency from 400 MHz to 3 GHz, has Series C Funding, Hires New CEO long been the technology of choice in the Flash memory technology specialist wireless infrastructure market. Dominating Morpho Technologies, a developer of Silicon Storage Technology (SST) has the space for power amplifiers, high-power ultra-high-performance digital signal acquired substantially all of the shares of LDMOS is a critical component in 3G processors (DSPs), has closed a $10 million privately held Actrans Systems. Founded in technology roll-out and accounts for nearly series C funding round. Current investors 2000 and headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, $700 million in sales each year, according Smart Technology Ventures and Actrans Systems is a fabless IC company to Allied Business Intelligence. BridgeWest co-led the round. that designs flash memory and EEPROM. Agere said it decided to exit the RF John Rayfield has joined Morpho SST plans to incorporate Actrans’ split- power business as part of its plan to focus Technologies as CEO. Following eight years gate NAND flash technology into its resources on core technologies. with ARM, most recently as VP of marketing portfolio of licensable IP. for the U.S., Rayfield formed Novelchange, The Ciclon team, led by CEO Mark SST will pay Actrans’ shareholders a strategic business consultancy advising Granahan, is composed primarily of former approximately $20 million in common stock companies in the microprocessor, DSP and Agere Systems management and and cash. SST will merge Actrans’ engineers semiconductor IP space. technologists. Key members of the team into its Standard Memory Product Group, were involved in the development and Morpho Technologies designs power- working in both Taiwan and the United qualification of Agere’s first-generation efficient, high-performance, reconfigurable States. technology, ARF4. DSP cores, which are based on the Actrans Systems develops flash memory company’s proprietary MSI architecture Ciclon, which formed in 2004, does not technology and products and also offers IP coupled with sophisticated development, at this time have a web site or contact services for embedded and customer- simulation and design tools. The company information. specific applications using flash memory is committed to delivering technology and EEPROM IP macros. Actrans’ split- Contact: designed around software defined radio gate NAND flash memory technologies use Sohail Khan, Agere exec. VP and chief (SDR) technology, which will enable strategy and development officer; Tel: 610 a 0.15- and 0.12-micron process for targeted 712-4323; www.agere.com. reconfigurable system architectures for densities ranging from 256 Mbit to 1Gbit. wireless networks. Powerchip Semiconductor, a licensee of TeraVicta Closes Contact: SST’s SuperFlash technology and an early $10 Million Financing John Rayfield, CEO; Tel: 949 475-0626; investor in Actrans Systems, has validated www.morphotech.com. the technology. SST expects to license these RF MEMS switch developer TeraVicta split-gate NAND products to Powerchip Technologies has closed a $10 million round Golden Gate Capital Acquires and collaborate with the company to bring of financing. Existing shareholders TDK Semiconductor Convergent Investors and Agave Capital these and other higher-density products into Golden Gate Capital has acquired TDK volume production. provided $7.5 million of equity financing, with new investor Horizon Technology Semiconductor Corporation for an Contact: Finance providing an additional $2.5 undisclosed sum. The current management Bing Yeh, SST president and CEO; Tel: 408 million. team will continue to lead the acquired 735-9110; www.sst.com. company, which will maintain its Additionally, TeraVicta signed a headquarters and operations in Irvine, Calif. Ciclon Semiconductor Purchases manufacturing agreement with a Hong The acquired company will continue to be Agere’s RF LDMOS Product Line Kong-based manufacturing partner, China called TDK Semiconductor Corporation Ciclon Semiconductor Device, a Resources Semiconductor (CRS). CRS, a for a short transition period until a new developer of high-frequency LDMOS subsidiary of China Resources Logic, will name has been established. products, has acquired the RF LDMOS provide high-volume production quantities of RF MEMS switching devices, TDK Semiconductor develops advanced product line of Agere Systems. With the analog and mixed-signal IC products for acquisition, Ciclon will acquire certain augmenting the present volume capabilities of TeraVicta’s facility in Austin, Tex. consumer, communications, and industrial research and development and applications for a large number of global manufacturing assets and inventory for TeraVicta is shipping its first product, a customers. ARF4 and ARF5 high-voltage LDMOS single-pole, double-throw (SPDT) RF technologies. In addition, Agere will license Contacts: MEMS switch called the TT712. David Dominik, Golden Gate Capital and assign critical IP and software associated Contact: managing director; Tel: 415 627-1387; with the product line to Ciclon. Kenney Roberts, president and CEO; Tel: 512 www.goldengatecap.com. LDMOS (laterally diffused metal oxide 684-8700; www.teravicta.com. Francis Sweeney, TDK U.S.A. president; Tel: 516 535-2600; www.tdk.com. semiconductor) technology, known for its ability to operate at high voltages and to

May 2005 Page 7 InsideChips.Ventures

Xelerated Secures $17 Million SiRF Technology to Acquire RF Ventures, and Waypoint Ventures. in New Funding Expert Kisel Microelectronics While EMI issues are typically handled by masking them at the end of the design Network processor vendor Xelerated GPS specialist SiRF Technology is cycle, X-EMI’s solution eliminates the has closed a $17 million Series C round acquiring Kisel Microelectronics, a problem at the source. The company’s chip- with new investors Accel Partners and company with extensive expertise in based solution is comprised of a transmitter Amadeus Capital Partners. Existing complex integrated transceiver designs. and receiver. The company employs an investors Atlas Venture and Alta Partners SiRF has agreed to pay up to $33 million in algorithmic approach that basically destroys also participated in the round. The company combination of cash and stock. The boards the clock and then extracts it at the end to will use the funding to build out sales and of directors of both companies and recover a clean clock. X-EMI says its support globally as well as to accelerate the shareholders of Kisel have approved the solution adds no jitter or changes in slew development of next-generation products. merger, which the companies expect to close rate, and can reduce EMI by several orders this quarter. Founded in Aug. 2000, Xelerated has of magnitude. combined the efficiency of an ASIC with Senior Ericsson designers founded Kisel (See our profile of X-EMI in the Jan. the programmability of network processors. at the end of 1999 under the name BlueChip 2005 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) Xelerated’s products target network IC Design to form a center of excellence for equipment for the enterprise and metro complex RFIC design. Kisel has been Contact: Ethernet markets. The company has several involved in the development of multiple Larry Woodson, CEO; Tel: 512 493-9660; www.x-emi.com. tier-one customers and key partnerships radios using a range of process technologies, with leading component vendors. from SiGe BiCMOS to pure bipolar and Pericom Invests in Frequency (See our profile of Xelerated in the July analog/RF-CMOS. The company has Control Products Supplier 2001 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) contributed its expertise to applications such as Bluetooth, WiMAX, WLAN, W-CDMA, Pericom Semiconductor is investing Contact: UWB, GSM/PCS/DCS, and several ISM approximately $12.6 million in AKER Johan Börje, CEO; Tel: 408 850-7155; applications. Technology Taiwan, a Taiwanese crystal www.xelerated.com. and frequency control products As part of the transaction, SiRF will manufacturing company. The companies T-RAM Closes $40 Million establish SiRF Technology (Sweden) as a Series C Round expect the investment to be completed in wholly owned subsidiary, and will hire all July 2005, at which point Pericom will hold T-RAM, a company developing a unique 19 Kisel employees. The team in Sweden an approximately 36.4% interest in AKER, type of memory that combines the speed of will continue their design services work for making Pericom AKER’s largest SRAM with the density of DRAM, has selected key customers and will also work shareholder. AKER is traded on the Taiwan raised $40 million in a Series C financing in conjunction with the SiRF RF engineering OTC Exchange (TWO) under the symbol round. InterWest Partners led the round, team in San Jose, Calif., on new product AKER, Code 6174. which included new investor CenterPoint developments. This investment will enable Pericom to Ventures along with the existing investors Kisel’s managing director, Tomas leverage its existing SaRonix frequency Tallwood Venture Capital, Mayfield, US Melander, will become managing director control product line with AKER’s low-cost Venture Partners and NEA. The company of SiRF Technology (Sweden). manufacturing and product-development has raised about $86 million to date. Contacts: capabilities. T-RAM is currently offering various Michael Canning, SiRF president and CEO; Contacts: configurations of its eZt™ (Enhanced Zero- Tel: 408 467-0410; www.sirf.com. Tomas Melander, Kisel managing director; Alex Hui, Pericom president and CEO; Tel: Turnaround) Late-Late-Write SRAM Tel: +46 8 410 300 60; www.kisel.com. 408 435-0800; www.pericom.com. Pipelined Read; Zt™ (Zero-Turnaround) Shi Rong-Wan, Aker president; Tel: 04 2533- Late-Late-Write SRAM Pipelined Read; X-EMI Adds $5 Million 5978; www.aker.com.tw. Zt™ (Zero-Turnaround) Late-Late-Write to Series A Funding ATMI Sells its Minority SRAM Flow-Through Read; Pipelined Interest in Emosyn to SST Burst SRAM Pipelined Read, Single Cycle X-EMI, a semiconductor company Deselect; Pipelined Burst SRAM Pipelined delivering technology that significantly ATMI, a supplier of materials and Read, Double Cycle Deselect; and Pipelined reduces electromagnetic interference (EMI) materials packaging to semiconductor Burst SRAM Flow-Through Read, Single in electronics systems, has added an manufacturers, has sold its 16.4% minority Cycle Deselect. additional $5 million investment to its Series interest in the Emosyn smart card business A round of funding. New investors Access (See our profile of T-RAM in the Jan. to Silicon Storage Technology for $3.1 Venture Partners, DFJ Mercury, and million. 2004 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) MarkPoint Venture Partners provided the Contact: funds, joining existing investors A-round In Sept. 2004, ATMI sold its Emosyn Kenneth Young, president and CEO; Tel: 408 investors InterWest Partners, Novus smart card business to Silicon Storage 597-3000; www.t-ram.com. Technology through a newly formed

May 2005 Page 8 InsideChips.Ventures

subsidiary, Emosyn International. ATMI Rambus Acquires Digital Core IP Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures, had retained a 16.4% ownership position in From GDA Technologies Ventech, SPEF Venture, Innovacom and that original transaction. ATMI is now CrossBridge Venture Partners of Japan. selling that remaining portion, which will Rambus has acquired digital core IP TAK Imaging raised $16.25 million in its result in Emosyn becoming a wholly owned assets from GDA Technologies, an Series C funding round in Jan. 2004. subsidiary of SST. electronic design services (EDS) solution provider. The deal provides Rambus with TAK Imaging has also completed the Contacts: acquisition of CompuMetric Labs, a Doug Neugold, ATMI CEO; Tel: 203 794- digital controller IP to complement its 1100; www.atmi.com. existing line of high-speed interface physical Fairhope, Ala.-based printer technology Bing Yeh, SST chairman, president and CEO; layer (PHY) products. Specifically, Rambus developer and consulting services company. Tel: 408 735-9110; www.sst.com. is acquiring digital core IP compatible with The acquisition bolsters its development of PCI Express, Ethernet, SPI-4, USB and ready-to-customize, system-level solutions Avnet Acquires Global SATA protocols, as well as products that for printer OEMs. Semiconductor Distributor Memec are currently in development and will be Formerly TAK’ASIC, the company Avnet is acquiring Memec in a stock and made available based on customer demand. changed its name to TAK Imaging on Jan. cash transaction valued at approximately Prakash Bare, VP of GDA’s IP business 1, 2005. $676 million, including the assumption of unit, will move to Rambus as GM of the (See our profile of TAK Imaging, under approximately $194 million of Memec’s digital IP business. Rambus will also be the former TAK’ASIC name, in the Aug. net debt. Under the terms of the agreement, extending offers to a number of GDA 2003 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) Memec investors will receive a total of Technologies employees, both in San Jose, Contact: approximately 24.011 million shares of Calif., and Bangalore, India, that are Avnet common stock plus approximately Doug Goodyear, CEO; Tel: 650 350-1100; affiliated with the design and development www.takasic.com. $64 million of cash. Avnet expects the of these digital IP cores. transaction to generate annual synergies of ChipMOS to Sell its Stake in First approximately $130 million from cost As part of this agreement, GDA becomes Semiconductor Technology savings, including $10 million from reduced a reseller of these digital controllers and interest expense. will offer this IP along with its IP and IP- ChipMOS Technologies has reached an enabled services. Additionally, GDA may agreement to sell its ownership interest in Memec, a global distributor specializing use the controllers in custom designs through First Semiconductor Technology (FST) in semiconductors, generated revenue of a technology licensing agreement. GDA back to FST. ChipMOS Taiwan acquired a approximately $2.3 billion in calendar year Technologies will continue to provide 67.83% interest in FST in Nov. 2004 in 2004. Memec has operations in 33 countries electronic design services, semiconductor connection with its acquisition of testing and 130 cities, and is the largest IP, verification IP and value-added IP- and assembly equipment from First semiconductor distributor focused primarily enabled services. International Computer Testing and on design chain services. In calendar year Assembly (FICTA). 2004, Memec grew total revenue Contacts: Samir Patel, Rambus VP of engineering; Tel: approximately 27%, with the Americas Under the share repurchase agreement, 650 947-5000; www.rambus.com. ChipMOS Taiwan will transfer 2.52 million accounting for 44% of Memec’s 2004 Prakash Bare, GDA VP of IP business unit; revenue followed by the Asia region, Tel: 91 44 3061 3300; www.gdatech.com. shares of FST to FST in exchange for total including Japan, at 31% and Europe, Middle consideration of approximately $2 million, East and Africa at 25%. TAK Imaging Closes $10 Million which is equivalent to the book value as of Funding Round the date ChipMOS Taiwan purchased the Avnet will integrate Memec, which shares. employs 2,400 people, into its Electronics TAK Imaging, a provider of dedicated imaging processors and solutions, has Contact: Marketing Group. After the acquisition, S.K. Chen, ChipMOS CFO; Tel: +886-6-507- Avnet’s Electronics Marketing Group will received an additional $10 million from its 7712; www.chipmos.com.tw. have operations in 69 countries and venture partners to support a family of new anticipated annual sales of more than $8.5 hardware and software solutions for the billion. photo-enabled printer market. The company plans to launch its first imaging solutions Contacts: Roy Vallee, Avnet chairman and CEO; Tel: this summer for the inkjet, dye sublimation 480 643-2000; www.avnet.com. and multi-function peripheral (MFP) David Ashworth, Memec president and CEO; categories of the photo-enabled printer Tel: 858 314-8800; www.memec.com. market. The new funding round includes all current investors: Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP), Sofinnova Partners,

May 2005 Page 9 InsideChips.Ventures Analyzing the Analysts

Worldwide Semiconductor Manufacturing industry in 2004 was the result of tight supply and demand Equipment Revenue Grew 64% in 2004 fundamentals. However, the emergence of excess inventories in the second quarter and the subsequent cutbacks in manufacturing Driven by strong device unit demand and tight manufacturing in the second half of 2004 heightened the sense of caution. This led capacity, worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment to a premature opening of a supply and demand gap, and equipment sales reached $37.6 billion in 2004, a 64.2% increase from 2003, orders declined in the latter half of the year. according to Gartner. Asia/Pacific was the fastest-growing region, with spending The 2004 market was marked by capacity buys with select increasing 108% in 2004. Asia/Pacific accounted for more than technologies in especially high demand, such as memory and SOC 50% of all equipment spending in 2004, a first in the history of the test, flip-chip bonding, select deposition, etch and photoresist industry. Japan’s equipment purchases grew 48.4%, while European processing. The strength of Asia/Pacific, driven by foundry and spending increased 22.8%. Gartner analysts said this slower growth memory investment and a cooling in growth in Japan, afforded was not from a lack of spending by European companies, but was Europe- and Americas-based equipment vendors an opportunity caused by an export of investment money from Europe largely into to regain market share against their Japanese rivals. the U.S. and Asia. After three consecutive years of decline, The top-10 vendors had double-digit growth in 2004, although equipment spending in the Americas grew 17.8%. Gartner analysts attribute some of these large increases to slow Additional information is available in the Gartner report sales in 2003. Applied Materials’ revenue increased 96.6% in “Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment Sales Exploded in 2004, as its market share increased from 14% in 2003 to 16.5% in 2004.” 2004. Canon experienced the largest growth rate, as its revenue Contact: increased 121.5% in 2004. (See Table 2.) Klaus Rinnen, research VP for semiconductor manufacturing and design research group; Tel: 203 964-0096; www.gartner.com. All equipment segments had strong growth. Wafer fab equipment (WFE), the largest sector, saw the strongest growth at New Study Forecasts a Good Year for 3G, 68.6%, following a weak performance in 2003. Packaging and but a Down Year For Older Technologies assembly equipment (PAE) expanded by 45.9%, while automated test equipment (ATE) jumped 58.5%. Forward Concepts concludes in its new in-depth study of the worldwide cell phone market and the chips that go into the phones While the industry experienced significant revenue increases, that 2004 cell phone shipments reached a record 715 million units, Gartner analysts said equipment suppliers experienced mixed including inexpensive PHS/PAS units in China. The study projects results as the year came to an end. The positive outcome for the that 2005 overall unit sales will increase only by 4.5% to the 746- million level, with larger markets for older Table 2 -- Worldwide Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment technologies declining and offsetting strong gains by newer technologies. For example, Forward Vendor Revenue Estimates for 2004 ($ Millions) Concepts projects that older TDMA shipments will 2004 2004 2003 2004 2003 Growth fall by 30%, and even traditional GSM shipments Company Market Rank Rank Revenue Revenue (%) will decline by a projected 23% this year. Share (%) 1 1 Applied Materials 6,310 16.5 3,211 96.6 On the other hand, cell phones addressing newer 2 2 Tokyo Electron Ltd.* 4,035 10.5 2,175 85.5 high-bandwidth technologies will grow sharply. EDGE cell phones will grow by 51% to the 60- 3 3 ASML 2,683 7 1,435 87 million unit level, WCDMA cell phones will grow 2,213 5.8 1,077 105.5 4 5 Advantest by 165% to the 45-million level and CDMA2000 5 6 KLA-Tencor 1,567 4.1 1,005 55.9 1xEVDO terminals (cards and handsets) will grow 64Nikon 1,522 4 1,301 17 by 65% to 16 million units. Although 2G Personal 77Novellus 1,198 3.1 805 48.8 HandyPhone service (PHS) is being rapidly 8 13 Canon 1,176 3.1 531 121.5 displaced in Japan by newer technologies, cell phones based on PHS will grow by 24% to the 77- 9 9 Lam Research 1,155 3 601 92.1 million level as the inexpensive units gain ground in 1,052 2.8 530 98.6 10 14 Dainippon Screen China, Taiwan, India and other countries. Others 14,939 40.1 10,220 46.2 Total 37,850 100 22,891 64.2 Forward Concepts’ assessment is that Texas *Tokyo Electron announced a change in its accounting rules in 2004, switching from Instruments remains the No. 1 cellular chip provider shipment-based to acceptance-based revenue recognition. However, because there is no overall, and also the No. 1 provider of baseband complete financial picture available for 2004, Gartner continues to report the company in chips for both 2G and 3G/UMTS cellular. And, its 2004 market share reports based on shipment-based revenue. with its OMAP2 application processor, TI has Note: Data includes revenue from acquisitions in 2003 for the entire year. quickly become number one in that market segment Source: Gartner Dataquest (April 2005) as well. The report states that TI cannot be

May 2005 Page 10 InsideChips.Ventures

complacent, however, as Qualcomm still dominates the CDMA • For cable modems, MSOs will continue to aggressively add market and has a large number of design-ins for its UMTS VoIP capability within their designs as improving DOCSIS standards baseband chips. Freescale Semiconductor had a very good year in helps them compete with faster next-generation DSL products. 2004 and is also gaining ground in the cellular chip market. • For PON, Japan currently drives most deployment activity and The cellular handset has become the physical and market will be the largest volume opportunity to chase in the near term. magnet that is pulling in the functionality of digital cameras, PDAs, However, certain carriers in the U.S., Korea, China, and Taiwan MP3 players, GPS navigation, Bluetooth, and even Wi-Fi, and is will also start larger field trials in 2005, which will lead to more quickly becoming the dominant market for each and all of these mainstream deployments beyond 2006. functions, and more. Forward Concepts’ new market study explores the market dynamics of each of these functions and the cell phone • PON will replace DSL completely in fiber to the home chip prospects for each of them. (FTTH) environments, while in others it will be employed as a The new 560-page study, entitled “Global Cellular Handset & backhaul technology to offer fiber extension to remote DSL Chip Markets,” provides detailed forecasts (by technology and by terminal infrastructure. region) of handsets, chips, and subscribers (by country), and • Although broadband technology has started to reach subscriber profiles cell phone OEMs, ODMs, cellular operators and the key saturation points in some well-established markets, emerging chip vendors. The report also provides estimates of the market countries such as China and India are still showing significant shares of the 40 major cell phone vendors, as well as the market upside opportunities. shares of the top cell phone chip vendors for digital basebands, analog basebands/power management, RF transceivers, RF power IDC’s two studies covering these issues are “Worldwide DSL amplifiers, application processors, camera sensors, Bluetooth and and Cable Modem Semiconductor 2005-2009 Forecast,” and color display drivers. “Worldwide PON Semiconductor 2005-2009 Forecast and Analysis.” Contact: Contact: Will Strauss, president; Tel: 480 968-3759; www.fwdconcepts.com. Sean Lavey, IDC program manager in semiconductor research group; Tel: 508 872-8200; www.idc.com. DSL, Cable Modem and PON IBM’s Cell Processor Impressive, Chip Sales to Grow Steadily but Not an Intel Killer The battle for broadband access into the home continues to heat A closely guarded secret for five years, IBM’s Cell processor up as higher bandwidth chip technology innovations ultimately has finally been unveiled, and In-Stat expects the chip to have a enable service providers to deliver “triple-play” service plans. IDC major impact on the video game market. The goal of Cell developers believes the addition of VoIP and high-definition video services was to create a new architecture that could process the next will remain a top priority for many carriers and cable providers generation of broadband media and graphics with greater efficiency worldwide. Increased competition from several fast-moving CLECs, than the traditional approaches of ultra-deep pipelines and the large cellular carriers, and specialized VoIP and IP video service ganging of numerous complex and power-inefficient, out-of-order providers, coupled with the desire to increase annual revenues per RISC or CISC cores. According to In-Stat, the chip will be a major user (ARPU), will drive further equipment replacement and part of Sony’s next-generation game console, and may have other expansion. In this environment, IDC predicts that the worldwide applications, but is unlikely to encroach dramatically on Intel’s DSL, cable modem, and PON semiconductor market will pass the territory. $2 billion mark by 2009. While some have called Cell an “Intel killer,” In-Stat believes The ability to support faster speeds over 20 Mbps, improved that the only place the Cell processor can be considered competition quality of service features, and increased security will fuel demand for Intel will be where the Sony next-generation game console for a new breed of chip products that will be at the heart of next- competes with the Media Center PC. generation broadband designs. More highly integrated copper- based DSL and cable modem chips, along with lower cost and more Most of the actual chips in the Cell family are unannounced. The standardized fiber-based PON chips and optical modules, will only announced product from the family is the version to be placed drive a healthy round of OEM development as service providers in Sony’s PlayStation 3. Overall, Sony will remain the market leader plan upgrades to their infrastructure over the next few years. in the next generation of consoles with its release of the PlayStation 3, although In-Stat expects both Microsoft and Nintendo to close the Two recently released IDC studies explore demand trends and gap and release next-generation consoles of their own. In-Stat discuss major semiconductor supplier strategies within the DSL, forecasts that total combined PlayStation 3, Xbox 2 and Revolution cable modem, and PON equipment markets. The following key revenue will rise from $1.1 billion in 2005 to $9.4 billion in 2008. findings are presented in these studies: The report, “Cell Processors: Separating Reality from Hype,” • For DSL, adoption of higher-speed ADSL2+ technology will is the first report published from In-Stat’s new Emerging continue to drive most carriers’ new deployment, while the upcoming Semiconductor Chips & Applications service. VDSL2 standard will drive healthy upgrades in shorter copper loop Contact: environments. Kevin Krewell, In-Stat analyst; Tel: 408 345-1634; www.instat.com.

May 2005 Page 11 InsideChips.Ventures Emerging Ventures

Update: TransDimension Series C round in 2004, and then Mark Becker joined TransDimension subsequently opened up a $7 million Series as VP of finance/administration and CFO in We first profiled TransDimension, a D round to do the ARC acquisition. Feb. 2005. Becker previously served as USB-focused company developing ICs, IP VantagePoint Venture Partners led the series CFO at wafer foundry Jazz Semiconductor. cores and enabling software, in April 2001. D financing, with participation by iSherpa Prior to Jazz, he held positions at Conexant Since then, TransDimension has made two Capital. GKM Ventures led the Series C Systems, Burr-Brown, Crystal key acquisitions, launched four USB chips, financing, which included both Series D Semiconductor and TI. and collected an impressive list of big- participants as well as Rolling Oaks Capital On the product side of TransDimension’s name customers for its chips and IP and Shelter Capital Partners. The combined business, the company is shipping a family products, including Hewlett-Packard, Series C and Series D financings totaled of four USB chips that accounted for the Freescale, Qualcomm and Samsung, among $18.35 million. To date, TransDimension majority of last year’s revenues. others. has raised approximately $35 million. TransDimension has shipped more than 10 TransDimension began shipping TransDimension, which has 60 million of these chips, which are comprised product at the end of 2001, experiencing its employees, has undergone some of host controllers, peripheral controllers, breakout year in 2004. The company had management changes over the last few years. and USB On-the-Go (OTG) controllers $20 million in revenues in 2004, up from Ping Liang, who founded TransDimension (USB OTG enables various devices to $4.9 million in 2003. TransDimension in 1997 and served as president and CEO, exchange data directly with each other expects to double that to $40 million in left the company in Aug. 2002. Liang without going through a PC). 2005. remained on the board of directors until TransDimension is currently focused on A key part of TransDimension’s success 2004, but is no longer involved with the the introduction and design-in of the is due to the acquisition of two companies. company. TD242LP, an all-in-one low-power host, In Nov. 2001, TransDimension picked up TransDimension hired Rick Goerner in peripheral and OTG controller. Other new SoftConnex, a provider of embedded USB Feb. 2002 to take over as president and products include: software for non-Windows environments. CEO. Previously, Goerner was president • TD1120 — Single-chip USB OTG The SoftConnex acquisition enables and COO of the Texas Instruments/Silicon controller that incorporates a full-speed host TransDimension to offer three levels of Systems Storage Products Group. Before and a high-speed peripheral controller; USB software, providing not only the chip its acquisition by TI, he held senior driver but also the USB protocol stack and management, business unit, marketing and • TD6100 — Full-speed USB OTG class drivers, such as digital camera, mass sales positions at Silicon Systems/TDK transceiver with built-in high-current charge storage, video cameras and many others. Group Company, culminating in his role as pump. This is an important differentiator for COO. Goerner has also held senior sales Products in development include the TransDimension, as it enables the company and marketing positions with Signetics and TD 2100, TransDimension’s first chip that to offer a complete turnkey solution, while Teledyne Semiconductor. competitors such as Cypress Semiconductor employs the high-speed USB core acquired and Philips only provide the chip driver. Jay Standiford serves as VP of ASIC from ARC; the TD2140, which takes that engineering. Standiford was previously the core design and adds a CEATA interface; The second acquisition involved the director of SOC engineering for the Platform and the TD1140, which is the 1120 with a assets of ARC International’s peripheral Technologies Division of Conexant CEATA interface. connectivity business in June 2004, which Systems. He also served as director of TransDimension is also developing provided TransDimension with high-speed engineering for TI’s Digital Solutions team, products for the UWB market. While USB IP. The company was in a classic which evolved from the TI Storage Products existing UWB companies are focused on make-or-buy situation, where internal division, where he held several positions the PC side, TransDimension is addressing development would have required devoting ranging from manager of digital design for the underserved non-PC, or peripheral, side 15 to 18 months and several million dollars. HDD read channels to lead project engineer. of this market. The company’s TD5100 will Instead, TransDimension spent $7 million Prior to TI, Standiford spent time at Silicon be a wireless USB host and scheduler block on the ARC assets purchase and not only Systems/TDK Group and was an with an MBOA MAC provided by its partner picked up a proven core and an experienced honorarium professor at the Univ. of company, Blue7 Communications (see our team, but also an actual business that is Colorado. generating revenues. profile of Blue 7, a UWB startup developing Pete Todd, VP of worldwide sales, was both the RF and baseband in CMOS, in the TransDimension’s initial IC products senior VP of account development for Oct. 2003 issue of InsideChips.Ventures). were full-speed (12 Mbps) embedded host Toshiba America Electronic Components. TransDimension also partnered with controllers, but the ARC high-speed assets During his 17 years in the industry, Todd StonestreetOne, a provider of short-range have enabled the company to develop high- has also held various marketing and sales wireless software solutions, to provide a speed chips (480 Mbps). positions within Toshiba, as well as a design complete wireless USB software solution. engineering position for Northrop. TransDimension closed a $12 million On the IP side of TransDimension’s

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business, the company’s goal is to continue Silicon Optix Liesegang switched to an OEM model, it generating revenues from its investment in decided to unload the approximately 15- IP, but to engage a partner to handle pre- Spun out of Genesis Microchip in June person LE, which Silicon Optix reportedly sales support, technical negotiations, 2000, Silicon Optix is developing video/ picked up for a bargain price in the low contracting, and support and maintenance image digital-processing ICs for the high- single-digit millions. work. TransDimension had initially entered end video market. The company’s primary The most significant acquisition was into an agreement with ARM, whereby ARM initiative is a video-processing chip that Teranex, which Silicon Optix bought in would license and represent the IP to its combines a programmable and very 2004. Teranex is a systems company that customers. After ARM’s acquisition of powerful DSP, high-quality algorithms and designs converters, post-processors and Artisan, however, TransDimension saw that proprietary geometry processing. Silicon noise reducers for professionals working in its IP would not have received adequate Optix is initially targeting large-area broadcasting and post-production houses. visibility. The company found a good displays, although its objective is to be Silicon Optix initially engaged with Teranex replacement partner in an un-named much more than just a display chip company. in 2001 to essentially put a Teranex box on company that supplies USB PHYs. Large displays represent the short-term low- a chip. Because Silicon Optix had certain hanging fruit, while the company’s long- The company currently has about 45 exclusivity rights to the IP, the company term objective is to be a platform digital licensees. was able to buy Teranex when its VCs video DSP company that addresses decided to sell the company. We believe the TransDimension’s strategy is to generate everything from capture and transmission transaction was approximately $10 million 75% to 80% of its revenue via its chip to distribution, editing, storage and display. products, and the remaining 20% to 25% – a steal, considering the technology Silicon Headquartered in San Jose, Calif., from software and IP licensing. In 2004, Optix picked up. Silicon Optix has grown to 160 people in about $16 million of the company’s $20 Lockheed Martin spent a decade and seven locations. All R&D is performed in million in revenues was in chips, with the close to a $100 million developing a San Jose and Orlando, Fla., in the U.S., and remaining $4 million evenly split between powerful SIMD architecture for video Toronto in Canada. The company maintains IP and software. processing, eventually spinning out the an applications team in Hanover, Germany, technology as Teranex, which spent another We believe TransDimension has and a customer support office in Taiwan $50 million of venture capital money positioned itself well in the burgeoning and two in China. USB and OTG markets. The company perfecting software and algorithms to run Silicon Optix has raised about $100 wisely acquired SoftConnex and ARC’s on the processor. Early on, Silicon Optix million over three funding rounds: $9 million USB business, both for relatively little recognized that, with 0.13-micron Series A in 2000, $48 million Series B in money, and both of which enhanced technology, it could make a chip with the 2002/2003, and $43 million Series C in TransDimension’s IC products and IP/ performance of the old Teranex boxes and 2004. The company’s major investors are software portfolio. The company’s value which also incorporated its own proprietary Polaris, Canaan, Apax, InterWest, Focus, proposition is that it can provide complete geometry processing to create the ultimate Origin, Primaxis and Acer Ventures. Genesis turnkey solutions, an important factor in the video processor. owns less than 1% of Silicon Optix. CE industry, where companies have limited To do this from scratch would likely be amounts of time to bring out new products. Paul Russo, who serves as chairman, a $300 million initiative, while Silicon Optix In addition to delivering a number of “firsts” president and CEO, is the principal founder has been able to leverage the 10-plus years in the industry — embedded USB host of Silicon Optix. Russo was the founder of and $150 million investment in the controller, for example, and OTG chip – Genesis Microchip, and served as CEO and foundation of the DSP architecture and TransDimension appears to have a good director from its inception in 1987 through algorithms. It provides a significant barrier grasp of what devices its customers will 2000, and as chairman through April 2001. to entry for others that want to address the need to enable future CE products. The Russo was previously GM of GE´s high-end video equipment market. company’s early focus on providing UWB Microelectronics Center, and senior Silicon Optix debated whether to keep solutions for the non-PC side of the wireless manager in GE´s Industrial Electronics Teranex as a business unit, eventually market enables it to both leverage its existing Group. From 1970 to 1980, Russo was a realizing that, as a business unit, Teranex software and gain traction before this space member of the technical staff and head of could serve as a great vehicle for driving becomes flooded with competitors. microsystems research at RCA´s David leading-edge IP. Silicon Optix is Sarnoff Research Center. He currently Contact: maintaining code compatibility across all serves as an outside director of ATI TransDimension its products, and therefore expects to 135 Technology Drive Technologies. Suite 250 ultimately implement on its chips all the Irvine, CA 92618 Silicon Optix has made two key innovations that come out of Teranex. acquisitions along the way. In Sept. 2003, Silicon Optix’s chip products consist of Tel: 949 727-2020 the company acquired Liesegang the sxZX1, sxW1, and REON, plus the Fax: 949 727-3232 Electronics (LE), a subsidiary of Liesegang recently released top-of-the-line Realta. Web: www.transdimension.com. that served as its development arm. When

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When the company spun out of Genesis it pricey, the Realta is going into products that Kent Goodin, executive VP of picked up a couple of the mother company’s cost thousands. The first CE product to ship engineering and technology, was the VP of chips, the sxZX1 and sxW1, along with the with the Realta chip is Denon’s flagship VLSI engineering at Parama Networks. customer base. The REON chip is the result DVD player, the DVD-5910, which has a Before Parama, he served as GM of the of the Liesegang acquisition. Silicon Optix suggested retail price of $3500. Mediamatics Group at National has between 40 and 50 customers using its Semiconductor and, from 1988 to 1996, Silicon Optix also offers systems older chips. worked in various engineering and products for professional AV and home management roles at Weitek. The company’s flagship product, the theater installations. However, except for Realta, provides video processing the very-high-end Teranex equipment, the Stephen Wood serves as VP of sales and capabilities equivalent to those in the high- company is moving to an OEM model for customer support. Wood was previously end $60,000 Teranex Xantus system. The these other box systems. A customer that VP of pro A/V engineering of Focus Realta aggregates the three legs of the does not want to spend the R&D resources Enhancements, and president and co- company’s technology IP: high-quality real- but still wants the technology can buy these founder of PC Video Conversion (acquired time geometry processing (all of the older systems and just slap its name on them. by Focus in 1998). Earlier, he was sales and chips provide this as well); a patented DSP Although the company has bitten off marketing manager at Redlake, and image processor, which is the part of the story that quite a bit for a startup, Silicon Optix has processing product specialist at MetraByte has roots at Lockheed Martin ; and proven formidable technology and appears to know (acquired by the Keithley Corporation). high-quality algorithms, which can be its markets and customers very well. Instead Wood started his career as a sales engineer implemented in hard-wired form or as of competing with Genesis and ATI with Matrox Electronics. software that runs on the processor. The Technologies in the low-end, high-volume Dennis Crespo is the company’s VP of REALTA also employs a 32-bit Tensilica market, the company has staked out a marketing. Crespo previously served as VP core to control the chip. position in the high-end CE market – similar of sales and marketing at Arithmos (now ST Silicon Optix’s real-time geometry to the positioning of BMW or Mercedes in Micro). He has also been director of processing (known as WARP, a digital video the auto industry, where volumes are still marketing at S3, marketing manager for effect involving any two- or three- good and margins are higher. The company Weitek, and product manager at Diamond dimensional change in shape of an input even has the equivalent of a Rolls Royce in Multimedia Systems. picture) can do high-definition video pixel- Teranex. By serving as a video DSP Douglas Lucky, VP of finance and by-pixel in real time, and apply intelligence solutions company that offers code- corporate development, was a partner with to each individual pixel. By applying strong compatible middle-range chips, higher-end RBC Capital Partners Technology Fund, image processing in this way, the company chips, blades, boxes and Teranex systems, where he co-led the Series A investment in is able to mimic the function of lenses, as well as a range of services, software and Silicon Optix. He previously spent 15 years enabling customers to employ lower-cost tools, we believe the company is going to as partner and senior VP with Ernst & and lower-quality optics and then improving succeed in establishing “stickiness” with Young Corporate Finance. the image quality digitally. customers. Michael Hopton, based in Toronto, is The company’s geometry processing Hamid Farzaneh, executive VP of sales VP of operations. Hopton joined the also provides very-high-quality 2D off-axis and business development, was previously company from Genesis, where he was correction, enabling users to place a co-founder and COO of Motion Sense, a manager of manufacturing engineering. projector anywhere in a room and still fabless MEMS controller startup. Prior to Before Genesis, he worked as a senior maintain a high-quality rectangular image. Motion Sense, Farzaneh was executive VP/ product engineer for Texas Instruments in In addition, REALTA can capture a wide- COO of Genesis Microchip, and VP of its mixed-signal ASIC division. angle image with a wide-angle lens and sales and marketing at ASAT. Earlier, he sensor, and then take any portion of the spent seven years at National Semiconductor Eric Erdman joined the company as warped image and unwrap it in real time. in marketing and business development. executive VP of operations and CFO in April This enables pan, tilt, and zoom functionality 2005. Erdman spent the last decade at Genesis CTO Louie Lee, a co-founder of Silicon digitally with no moving parts. Microchip. He initially served as CFO, and Optix, was previously manager of the spent the last two years as interim CEO. The company’s DSP platform is the Advanced Technology Development beneficiary of the Lockheed Martin/ Department at Genesis Microchip. Before Contact: Silicon Optix Teranex/Silicon Optix development history Genesis, Lee served as manager of 2025 Gateway Place discussed earlier. The SIMD device has architecture at Matrox Typhoon Suite 360 3,072 processors running at 330 MHz for Technologies, a subsidiary of Matrox San Jose, CA 95110 more than a trillion OPS. The DSP represents Graphics. He also served as design center about half the chip. manager and program manager at LSI Logic. Tel: 408 487-9290 Fax: 408 487-9298 Silicon Optix is selling the Realta for He was engineering manager at Litton Web: www.siliconoptix.com. approximately $90 for volumes in the Systems from 1984 to 1994, and started his 50,000-units-per-year range. Although career at Perle Systems.

May 2005 Page 14 InsideChips.Ventures

Auvitek International Technology Venture/Terabank Systems, digital receiving path into one chip, which president and CEO of Vistro Computers, enables the use of the reduced-cost digital Founded in March 2004, Auvitek and director of advanced product planning half tuner for both digital and analog. The International is developing a portfolio of and marketing at Ramtek. company’s initial chip will sell for about high-performance DTV/HDTV $14, which the company says will save Dong, Auvitek’s CEO, was Sr. VP of demodulation processors for the digital manufacturers about $8 to $10, as they no communication engineering at ESS television (DTV) market. With mandatory longer need to use separate tuners or Technology. He joined ESS via its DTV adoption deadlines in place in many expensive multimedia tuners. acquisition of OSEE Technology, which he countries, the stage is set for DTV to really founded and where he served as CEO. Before The company’s first products, the take off in the mass consumer market. that, he developed modem software for AU8501 and AU8502, are demodulators + Auvitek’s objective is to reduce the video conferencing systems at Integrated analog TV decoders + BTSC decoders that electronics BOM for DTV manufacturers, Information Technology (later 8X8). will address the U.S. terrestrial ATSC who can then provide much more affordable Earlier, he worked in Motorola’s Codex R/ market. Follow-on chips will address the DTVs to consumers. D group, where he focused on digital European and China markets. Auvitek will Auvitek’s primary founders, Ping Dong communication, DSP algorithm R&D in launch the 8501in Q3 2005. and Victor Ren, came from ESS Technology. high-speed modems, DSL, and wireless Although most consumers use TV Ren, who serves as Auvitek’s COO, was VP communication. services such as cable and satellite, the fact of marketing at ESS from 2002 to 2004. In Sept. 2004, Auvitek closed a $4 that governments around the world have Before that, he was VP of sales and business million first round of funding, led by KLM mandated deadlines for digital TV means development at Stream Machine and, Capital Group, Storm Ventures and that every TV sold must eventually have a following Cirrus Logic’s acquisition of that VenGlobal Capital. built-in terrestrial tuner (see Table 3). In the company, spent three years as VP of product U.S., the FCC has implemented a staggered marketing at Cirrus. He was also president Ten of Auvitek’s 35 employees develop schedule with varying deadlines between and CEO of Onward Electronics & the core technology in the U.S., with the July 1, 2004, and July 1, 2007 (see Table 4). Technology, which he founded as a joint remaining 25 engineers performing However, analog TV broadcasts will venture company in China with the Ministry peripheral system-level design at its office continue until 2010, providing Auvitek with of Electronics Industry. Previous positions in Shanghai, China. a potentially huge opportunity for its ATSC include serving as a consultant with Xerox TV tuners currently on the market are chips. either two separate tuners for analog and For quick market entry, Auvitek is digital, or a far more expensive multimedia Table 3 -- Mandatory targeting the 8501, which has a built-in PCI analog/digital tuner: DTV Adoption bus, at PC add-on DTV peripherals. • Multimedia tuner for analog/digital — Multimedia PCs are growing in popularity, Country Year $12 to $15 and they all have built-in TV tuner cards (currently analog, but digital tuners are U.S. 2007 • Analog tuner — $4 to $6 coming soon). Auvitek’s 8502, which does Europe 2010 • Half tuner (digital) — < $4. not have a PCI bus, is targeted at digital TVs Japan 2011 and STBs. Auvitek integrated the entire analog and China 2015 Auvitek chose to address the terrestrial DTV market first as it is a more difficult proposition than cable or satellite, and far Table 4 -- FCC DTV Build-in Schedule fewer companies are competing on the Product Schedule terrestrial side. In the future, Auvitek plans to expand its scope to address the larger 50% of a responsible party’s units must include DTV Receivers with screen sizes DTV market. tuners effective July 1, 2004; 100% of such units must 36 inches and above include DTV tuners effective July 1, 2005. Contact: Auvitek International 50% of a responsible party’s units must include DTV Receivers with screen sizes 48461 Fremont Blvd. tuners effective July 1, 2005; 100% of such units must 25 to 35 inches Fremont, CA 94538 include DTV tuners effective July 1, 2006. Web: www.auvitek.com. Receivers with screen sizes 100% of all such units must include DTV tuners 13 to 24 inches effective July 1, 2007. Note: Auvitek is in the process of moving, so TV Interface Devices: DVD no contact telephone number is available. Check the company's web site in summer players/recorders, etc., that 100% of all such units must include DTV tuners 2005 for updated contact information. receive broadcast television effective July 1, 2007. signals

May 2005 Page 15 InsideChips.Ventures

Siano Mobile Silicon engineer and a communications design expert • ISDB-T (integrated services digital at Nexus, Orckit and DSP Group. broadcast - terrestrial) is the Japanese Founded in June 2004, Siano is the Siano approached a number of VCs in standard. brainchild of Alon Ironi and Hamutal Raab, spring 2004, once the company had something the former CEO and COO, respectively, of The MDTV situation in China is to show. Many felt that the market would not Emblaze Semiconductor. The 30-person currently unresolved. Two groups in China be very big or would require too much startup is developing an all-CMOS, multi- have competing standards, both with funding. But Jerusalem Venture Partners standard, multi-band integrated receiver for domestic semiconductor companies on their (JVP) was hot on the idea from the beginning, the emerging mobile digital TV (MDTV) respective sides; Nokia is pushing to get a helping Siano research the market and market. license for DVB-H trials; and the larger develop a comprehensive business plan. JVP Korean companies are applying pressure When Zoran acquired Emblaze provided a Series A bridge loan, and Siano on China to allow them to go ahead with a Semiconductor in 2004, Ironi and Raab added Walden Israel and Star Ventures to the trial for DMB. Although China will likely began looking for their next venture. round and came up with $11.5 million. have at least one mobile digital TV service Discussions with Asian and European Seeking to add a board member that had available in time for the Beijing 2008 contacts convinced them that MDTV was a lot of experience and exposure in the Olympic games, which standard and when going to be the next big thing in cell phones, semiconductor industry, Siano approached it will happen is still open. The possibility so they organized a small team and came up former Infineon Technologies CEO Ulrich exists that different standards will be with a low-power and small-size architecture Schumacher in fall 2004. Schumacher implemented in different provinces. well suited to this application. accepted the company’s offer, joining Ironi Startups competing in the mobile DTV Ironi serves as CEO, president and acting and the three VCs on Sirano’s board of market include Frontier Silicon and VP of marketing for Siano. In addition to directors. DiBcom. Frontier, a company best known his previous role as CEO of Emblaze Siano is just about ready to tape out its for its digital audio broadcasting chips, has Semiconductor, Ironi has been Entrepreneur first chip, the SMS1000. While the company DMB chips for the Korean market that have in Residence at Concord VC, GM of Zoran waits for samples to arrive this summer, it is been designed into first-generation mobile Israel and VP of engineering at Zoran, where continuing with the design of the mass- TV products such as mobile phones and he was in charge of Zoran’s overall production version, which is reduced in PDAs. The company is also addressing engineering activity worldwide. silicon area and power. DVB-H, Europe’s mobile TV standard. Raab, who was COO at Emblaze Siano says its key differentiator is DiBcom, based in Palaiseau, France, Semiconductor, holds the same position at dramatically lower power consumption. The has two initial ICs, one designed for high- Sirano. Previously, she was VP of operations company moved several functions out of speed environments such as automobiles, at Lenslet Labs, and VP of human resources the RF domain and into the digital domain, and one for portable applications that do not at Zoran. for example, and the chip runs at a frequency need to move as fast. Sirano’s management team also includes that is less than 50% that of its competitors. In addition, an April 2005 press release Lior Peleg as VP of R&D, Guy Shochet as The company also integrated multiple named a number of chip companies that are CTO, and Amnon Harpak as chief engineer. standards on one piece of silicon without publicly announcing support for DVB-H. Peleg was a member of the team that paying the penalty of additional area. These include the startups mentioned above, established Ethernet solutions provider The company expects to be the first to as well as Freescale, Intel, Microtune, S- Mysticom, where he was director of IC have a zero-IF RF tuner made in CMOS. Communications, TTPCom, and Texas engineering and product development. Prior Although a cost-effective and power- Instruments, which introduced a chip for to that, he held several design and efficient way to convert an RF signal to DVB-H and ISDB-T MDTV, code-named management positions at National baseband, noise can be a problem in CMOS “Hollywood,” in Oct. 2004. Semiconductor. implementations. Siano has patented certain (See our profile of Frontier in the Jan. Shochet was among the core team that methods for dealing with this problem, 2005 issue of InsideChips.Ventures, and established Metalink, where he was VP of enabling an entire solution based on CMOS. DiBcom in the April 2003 issue.) the Wireless Business Unit. Before that, he Several different standards for mobile Contact: was associate VP of R&D at Metalink and, DTV are in place around the world. These Siano Mobile Silicon earlier, was an R&D staff engineer with the include three primary open standards 6 Hagavish st. Communications Corps of the IDF. Poleg Industrial Park developed by industry associations and P.O.Box 8684 Harpak was a co-founder of xDSL companies in the MDTV space: Netanya, 42507 Israel solutions provider Savan Communication • DMB (digital media broadcast), already (acquired by Infineon in 2000), where he deployed in Korea; was system engineering and application group Tel: +972 (9) 8656993 manager as well as R&D manager. Prior to • DVB-H (digital video broadcast — Fax: +972 (9) 8656994 Savan, he was a leading hardware and system handheld) is the European standard; Web: www.siano-ms.com.

May 2005 Page 16 InsideChips.Ventures

ElectriPHY Mike Atkin and Jay Aggarwal round out copper distribution throughout the structure. ElectriPHY’s management team as VP of VDSL is very heavily deployed in Japan ElectriPHY is a two-year-old startup engineering and director of marketing, and Korea, and is being rolled out now in developing high-performance chips for the respectively. China, which is ElectriPHY’s initial focus emerging VDSL market. The company’s Atkin joined ElectriPHY from LSI market. Service providers will roll out VDSL products are optimized for “triple-play” Logic, where he was most recently VP of in North America and Europe in 2006 and services — voice, video and data — while engineering for the Communications 2007with the advent and implementation of delivering low power and cost. Standard Products Group, and prior to that, the next generation, called VDSL2. Founded in April 2003, ElectriPHY has VP of ASIC customer engineering. Currently, providers such as SBC 27 employees and about 10 consultants. Previously, he spent 19 years at National Communications and Qwest are offering Bay Partners and Lightspeed Venture Semiconductor in various executive and VDSL in select areas. Partners co-led the $9 million Series A product development management roles, ElectriPHY is focusing on providing round, and the company is in the process of most recently as VP of engineering for the small, low-cost and -power chips with high raising Series B funding. Information Appliance group. performance, which are the factors most The two co-founders, Jim Apfel and Prior to ElectriPHY, Aggarwal held important to carriers. The company Zhi-Yuan Guan, both have extensive various marketing and sales management developed an architecture that delivers less experience in the modem industry. Apfel roles at semiconductor companies that than 1 W per port at full data rate, which the serves as executive VP of sales and include Xilinx and Altera. He has more than company claims is 40% to 50% less than marketing and focuses on the business side 15 years of general management, marketing competitive solutions. To reduce die size, of the company, while CTO Guan heads up and sales experience in semiconductors. ElectriPHY implemented a number of the technical end. VDSL (very-high-speed DSL) is the system features on chip, which eliminates Prior to ElectriPHY, Apfel developed next-generation high-speed broadband- the need for equipment manufacturer and skills in executive management, worldwide access technology that dramatically carriers to put additional filters and discrete sales and marketing and new business increases data rates over current DSL components on the board. development at Aspex, Conexant, Diamond capabilities. ADSL, widely deployed in the The company also developed internally Multimedia and Element 14. He is active in installed base, provides 1 Mbps to 1.5 Mbps a number of RISC machine functions that the industry standards committees, including of downstream performance. The latest eliminated the need to license a processor T1E1.4, ETSI and ITU-T. ADSL technology, ADSL2+, increases core from another company. This saved Guan previously held development and bandwidth to 24 Mbps downstream and 3 ElectriPHY quite a bit of die size as well as management positions at Digicom Systems, Mbps up, but is basically out of gas – the economic burden of paying royalties. performance cannot be substantially General Datacom, Philips Labs, TV/Com Along with low power and die size, improved from this point on. and High Speed Communications. He has ElectriPHY is able to provide high led the development of solutions for satellite The future therefore appears to belong performance as a result of the first modems, DSP-based voice modems, ADSL, to VDSL, which, in its initial implementation of a technology called SHDSL, & VDSL chipsets and multiple implementation, provides 52 Mbps dynamic spectrum management (DSM). modulation schemes including QAM/ downstream and 30 Mbps up. Telcos are DSM, which has been extensively QPSK/VSB/OFDM. very excited about the technology, as it researched by John Cioffi at Stanford, ElectriPHY brought in 32-year high- enables them to deliver triple-play voice, analyzes the electrical environment to which tech veteran Ray Farnham in Jan. 2005 to video and data and to finally compete with a given pair of wires is exposed. DSM looks head the company as president and CEO. cable operators. at both the physical characteristics of the Farnham most recently was the president Service providers can distribute VDSL line (impedance) and, more importantly, and CEO of Precision I/O and, before that, to customers in a number of ways. For the interference environment created by president and CEO of IDS Software Systems example: adjacent wires. (acquired by PDF Solutions in Sept. 2003). ElectriPHY developed algorithms for Directly from the central office via long- Earlier, he served as a director, chairman of • DSM that made possible the first practical the board, president and CEO of Hi/fn reach copper connections; implementation of the technology. These (which Farnham took public in 1998), • Fiber feed to a campus environment, algorithms enable the company to analyze executive VP of Integrated Device with copper distribution throughout the the electrical environment on a dynamic Technology, and president and CEO of campus; basis and adjust the frequency spectrum to Opti. From 1972 through 1993, he held optimize rate and reach. The result is that, at numerous management positions at National • Fiber to the node in a residential any given point in time, all subscribers are Semiconductor, culminating with president environment, with copper distribution from experiencing the best possible spectrum of the Communication and Computing the node to individual subscribers; utilization and bandwidth. Group. • Fiber to multi-tenant buildings, with The company’s Phybrwire products

May 2005 Page 17 InsideChips.Ventures

consist of two chipsets: The four-port, four- music player applications that use the Ogg continuous operation replaying music band Phybrwire 400 VDSL chipset for the Vorbis format, a new “license-free and compressed in Ogg Vorbis. The FS-500 central office and the single-port Phybrwire royalty-free” compression format for digital also supports various sound-effect functions, 100 VDSL for customer premise equipment. music players. Ogg Vorbis can provide such as equalization, echo, panning, and Both families are comprised of an advanced higher sound quality and better compression phase-shift stereophonic sound images digital transceiver (ADX) device and a high- than the MP3 format, but it requires more (Virtual 3D). precision analog front end (AFE). The chips complex data processing than MP3, FineArch is now sampling the FS-500 in are VDSL in, Ethernet out. especially for the encoder/decoder function. a 144-pin LQFP package with the evaluation The great benefit of Ogg Vorbis is that the Because the frequency spectrum used board implemented as a complete Ogg format is completely free, open, and for transmission varies depending on Vorbis music player design. The company unpatented. geography – North America has a band expects to begin volume production of the plan, as does Japan, China, etc. – Phybrwire (More information about Ogg Vorbis FS-500 within the year in a 176-pin FPBGA provides a software-configurable band plan, can be found at www.xiph.org) package. The volume production version enabling ElectriPHY to ship the same In July 2003, FineArch revealed its first will support additional formats, such as products to a worldwide market. system-level IP product for Ogg Vorbis- WMA, AAC, ADPCM and AC3. ElectriPHY has sampled Phybrwire to based music players. The product consists FineArch is still a small-scale operation, several customers, and expects to have of hardware IP for silicon implementation employing fewer than 10 people under CEO VDSL2 products later this year. and software IP (firmware) running on the Ohta. However, the company was able to The price for Phybrwire is $6.95 per hardware IP. The hardware IP is based on attract Shinichi Okamoto, formerly CTO of port, which will be one of the company’s the company’s proprietary “MultiCore” Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE), to most attractive features. This price point for architecture, which integrates a 32-bit serve as director of strategic business VDSL approaches ADSL2+ pricing, which configurable RISC processor and a 32-bit development at FineArch. Okamoto was a is about $6.50 per port, and is well below VLIW DSP with SRAM, ROM and key person at SCE, and is widely known and competing VDSL solutions from the interfacing functions, including SD card respected in the worldwide electronic incumbents in this space, Ikanos and and USB. Both the RISC processor and entertainment industry. He was responsible Metalink, at $12 to $15 per port. DSP are FinArch’s proprietary designs, for for developing SCE’s game-computing which the company has filed five patents. machine, Play Station (PS), as well as PS-2 ElectriPHY is promising a die size that and Play Station Portable (PSP). He was is one-third to one-quarter that of solutions FineArch had earlier tried to sell its system-level IP to major consumer also involved in the recently announced from Ikanos and Metalink at a given “CELL” architecture jointly developed by technology node. The company claims per- manufacturers, but shifted its business model from IP provider to fabless chip supplier in Sony, SCE, Toshiba and IBM. After leaving port power consumption that is one-half to SCE in mid-2004, Okamoto has worked as one-third that of the incumbents. Jan. 2005. At the same time, FineArch unveiled its first standard silicon product, an independent R&D consultant, and he is Contact: the FS-500, which featured the company’s an advisory board member of PC peripheral ElectriPHY supplier Logitech. 3255-2 Scott Blvd application firmware optimized for Ogg Suite 104 Vorbis music players. The FS-500 integrates FineArch has held two relatively small Santa Clara, CA 95054 all the key functions required for music financial rounds. The company has named players that support the Ogg Vorbis format, Japan Asia Investment Co. (JAIC) as one of Tel: 408 748-8000 Fax: 408 748-8002 and the processing firmware is embedded the investors, although no other details are Web: www.electriphy.com. into internal ROM. In addition to all the available. FineArch is currently holding its functions the company previously Series C round, and is aiming to raise another FineArch implemented in its system-level IP, the FS- $2 million or $3 million. 500 also integrates a delta-sigma D to A Ken Ohta and Toshiyuki Kouchi, two FineArch has already announced plans converter, which can drive D-class audio SOC designers formerly with Motorola for two new products: The FS-300 is a amplifiers. In addition to Ogg Vorbis, the Japan Sendai Semiconductor Design Center lower-cost version of FS-500, and the FS- chip can also decode MP3 and WAV signals. (now Freescale Semiconductor Japan) 700 is a high-end version. The FS-300 will launched FineArch in Feb. 2000 to develop Fabricated using Fujitsu’s 0.18-micron support limited signal formats and interface an original CPU and DSP for mobile CMOS process, the FS-500 can decode functions, while the FS-700 will support a entertainment devices. Unlike typical Ogg Vorbis signals from multiple sources wide range of signal formats, including Japanese semiconductor startups, which at a low clock rate of 8 MHz without external MPEG4 and interfacing functions such as often ramp up business by providing design SRAM, resulting in lower power dissipation ATA and USB 2.0. services to OEM companies, FineArch and longer battery life — important factors We have heard that Ogg Vorbis is more implemented an IP business model right for portable consumer electronics products. popular in Korea than in Japan. To succeed from the start. According to FineArch, a single U3 battery as a fabless semiconductor firm, FineArch can provide users with 38 hours of FineArch is primarily targeting portable

May 2005 Page 18 InsideChips.Ventures

will have to enhance its sales and marketing acquired in turn by Monterey. Earlier, optimized processes that accelerate overall capabilities in the Asian market. Markosian acquired design and engineering time to volume production. Contact: experience at Compass Design Automation To implement this vision, Ponté is FineArch, Inc. and VLSI Technologies. leveraging three core technologies: a Time-24 Building comprehensive unified yield modeling 4W-2, 2-45, Aomi, Koto-ku Prior to co-founding Ponté, Sargisian Tokyo 135-8073 served as director of engineering at platform, which enables strong correlation Japan Monterey Design Systems and Aristo with fab results; high-capacity data Technology (acquired by Monterey). processing that can process billions of Tel:+81-3-5531-0373 Previously, Sedrak held senior software nanometer structures overnight; and robust Fax:+81-3-5531-0205 yield analysis technology that delivers Web: www.finearch.com. engineering positions at Compass Design Automation, Intel, Mars/GEC Industrial design-content-specific analysis for various Ponté Solutions Control and Yerevan Physics Institute/JINR. random and systematic defects, enables “what-if” analysis, and is orders of Named after the Italian word for “bridge,” In April 2005, Ponté brought in Nitin magnitude faster than rule-based systems. Ponté Solutions is building a bridge between Deo to serve as senior VP of marketing. design and manufacturing by bringing model- Deo previously spent six years at Magma Because foundries are very protective based yield analysis into the design process. Design Automation, where he served as VP of their IP, Ponté decided to work initially While yield has traditionally been the domain of sales for Japan before assuming the role with IDMs, where design and fab are within of IC manufacturing, Ponté believes yield of marketing and business development the same company. Ponté’s strategy to get issues have become as much a design problem executive. Previously, he was VP of into the foundries is to work through their as a fab problem. The company’s technology marketing at Moscape (acquired by customers. Although foundries are more provides visibility into these yield issues Magma), VP of marketing at Mayasoft challenging, Ponté is addressing IP right from the beginning, enabling designers (acquired by E.piphany), and spent four protection issues with an encryption to deal with problems that otherwise haunt years at Synopsys in various marketing and mechanism that conceals process specifics them at the manufacturing stage. business development roles. His IC design while still providing sufficient information and applications experience includes several to designers for use in modeling, analysis, The company originally launched in Oct. years at Fujitsu and Mitsubishi. prediction and optimization. 2001 under the name “E-Z-CAD,” changing it to Ponté Solutions in April 2005. Ponté Arklin Kee, VP of business development, Ponté’s first product will be a yield- raised $10 million in Series A funding from served as VP of sales and business analysis tool, which will provide designers Telos Venture Partners, US Venture Partners development for Gigascale IC. Previously, with yield visibility at different phases of and Incubic. he worked for InTime Software as VP of the design flow. The company says the business development, and for Cadence as analysis technology is the cornerstone on Ponté has about 60 employees, about 50 VP of business development. He started his which it will build other products. of whom are based in the company’s career as a technical associate at Bell Armenia office. The company is Many EDA companies are developing Telephone Laboratories. headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., DFM and DFY solutions, although Ponté is and has sales offices in France and Japan. Ponté is not yet disclosing the details of unique in bringing statistical yield modeling its first product, which will be launched into the IC design flow. There is also EDA veteran Alex Alexanian, who later this year, but the company has begun competition with advanced IDMs, such as serves as president and CEO, founded the revealing the nature of its technology. Intel, IBM and several others, which have company with CTO Ara Markosian and VP internal tools that tie together design and of engineering Sedrak Sargisian, Prior to Traditional rules-based methodologies, manufacturing. Another set of competitors founding Ponté, Alexanian was president, says Ponté, are not able to provide sufficient approach the problem either after CEO and founder of Mosaic Systems, a visibility into yield issues at sub-130-nm completion of the design, or after provider of ultra-fast semiconductor process nodes. The design-specific aspect manufacturing prototypes. The good news memory solutions for high-end networking is lost in these rules, which do not actually for all of these companies is that DFM and and computing. Previously, he worked for depict the specifics of nanometer properties DFY are so important, and the problems so several years as a member of consulting and are completely design independent. It is great, that there is lots of room for different staff at Cadence Design Systems, and he not unusual for two different designs products and approaches. has worked at several institutions in Armenia following the same rules to achieve dramatically different yields. Contact: doing research and engineering, building Ponté Solutions mainframes and programmable logic Ponté’s vision is to supply tools that can 2570 West El Camino Real controllers for industrial automation. provide visibility at the design stage, helping Suite 250 Mountain View, CA 94040 Markosian previously held positions as to analyze, predict and enhance yields early director of engineering at Monterey Design in the process. The company intends its Tel: 650 559-9001 Systems and Aristo Technology. He was tools to help drive down the cost of silicon Fax: 650 559-9244 also the founder of Arset, acquired by Aristo, by providing more predictable and better- Web: www.Pontésolutions.com.

May 2005 Page 19 InsideChips.Ventures Agreements and Marketing Alliances

members of the FlexRay Consortium, will Wavesat, CRC and C-DOT Address National Licenses Gigabit Ethernet combine their in-vehicle networking Fixed WiMAX For Rural Broadband PHY Core to Alliance expertise and use a common FlexRay WiMAX silicon specialist Wavesat has protocol engine design and a common Alliance Semiconductor has licensed begun working with India’s C-DOT and System C-based reference software model National Semiconductor’s gigabit Ethernet Canada’s Communications Research to ensure interoperability of their FlexRay physical layer (PHY) core for use in its next Centre Canada (CRC) to build a cost- devices. generation of networking devices. effective fixed wireless access solution National’s gigabit Ethernet PHY core has a The shared FlexRay protocol engine field-proven architecture that delivers based on the IEEE 802.16-2004 standard. design and the jointly developed executable C-DOT is a telecom technology centre of gigabit-per-second performance, low power protocol model are now available for license consumption, and enhanced testability. The the Government of India, and the CRC is from Freescale. Philips and Freescale plan the Government of Canada’s primary core is a fully featured single-port Ethernet to introduce additional FlexRay products PHY supporting 10BaseT, 100BaseTX and research facility into telecommunications during 2005. The first vehicles equipped technologies. 1000BaseT Ethernet protocols, enabling a with networking capabilities based on the cost-effective migration path from existing C-DOT and CRC have taken steps to FlexRay protocol are anticipated in 2006. fast Ethernet applications. embark on the joint development of a Contacts: Contact: Harry Inia, Philips Semiconductors VP and MILTON (microwave-light organized Nirmal Saxena, Alliance CTO; Tel: 408 855- GM of Automotive Business Line; Tel: 408 network)-based core broadband platform 4900; www.alsc.com. 434-3000; for India, powered by Wavesat’s WiMAX Mike Noonen, National VP of Interface www.semiconductors.philips.com. Group; Tel: 408 721-5000; silicon chip technology. Paul Grimme, Freescale Sr. VP and GM of www.national.com. Founded in 1993, Wavesat is a fabless automotive business; Tel: 480 768-2130; www.freescale.com. semiconductor company focused on FlipChip, NEC Sign Cross- developing modem chips for WiMAX- Licensing Agreement compliant systems. The company is FlipChip International and NEC headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Lattice, Synplicity Ink Development and Marketing Agreement Electronics have entered into an extensive Contacts: patent cross-licensing agreement for Vijay Madan, C-DOT executive director; Tel: Lattice Semiconductor and Synplicity advanced wafer-level packaging, flip-chip (011)26802856; www.cdot.com. have signed a comprehensive development Dr. Veena Rawat, CRC acting president; Tel: bumping, solder-bump reinforcement and (613) 998-2388; www.crc.ca/milton. and marketing agreement to enhance and wafer applied underfill technologies. As Michel Guay, Wavesat president and CEO; promote Lattice FPGA device performance part of the agreement, FlipChip will license Tel: 514 684-0200; www.wavesat.com. in Synplicity’s Synplify Pro FPGA synthesis its wafer-level packaging patents, including tool during the second half of 2005. The Ultra CSP, Polymer Collar, and Spheron Freescale, Philips to Drive agreement calls for significant product types, to NEC Electronics. NEC Common FlexRay Technology enhancements, including register retiming, will license its redistribution wafer-level To help the drive toward a common pipelining, and memory inferencing, to packaging, solder-bump reinforcement and standard for next-generation in-vehicle strengthen support for Lattice FPGAs. The wafer applied underfill patents to FlipChip. networks, Freescale Semiconductor and Synplify Pro software currently supports all Lattice digital programmable logic devices, Wafer level packaging, a process in Philips have agreed to share their FlexRay which semiconductors are packaged on the technologies. The agreement supports the including the new non-volatile LatticeXP FPGAs. wafer prior to dicing, offers significant development, availability and compatibility advantages in form factor and weight that of semiconductor-based FlexRay products Synplify Pro software, Lattice-only, enable real chip-scale packaging (CSP). from Philips and Freescale. node-locked, supporting all Lattice digital The two companies will apply these FlexRay is a new network programmable devices, is currently advanced packaging technologies to devices communication system targeted specifically available from Synplicity starting at such as discrete components, logic, ASICs, at the next generation of automotive $20,000. microprocessors, flash memory and other applications, or “by-wire” applications. Contacts: next-generation devices for applications in FlexRay will enable next-generation, high- Chris Fanning, Lattice VP of software; Tel: the mobile phone, digital still camera, bandwidth control applications, including 503 268-8000; www.latticesemi.com. automotive, PDA and other emerging Joe Gianelli, Synplicity VP of business powertrain and body systems. It will development; Tel: 408 215-6000; markets. ultimately target by-wire solutions for active www.synplicity.com. Contact: chassis management, braking systems and Bob Forcier, FlipChip president and CEO; steering. Tel: 602 431-6020; www.flipchip.com. Philips and Freescale, both founding

May 2005 Page 20 InsideChips.Ventures ASICs, IP and Design Services

Atrenta Unveils Predictive ARM Licenses Processors combinational equivalence checkers, can Development Solutions to Chipnuts Technology support designs with sequential differences. The SLEC product family initially EDA firm Atrenta has released a new Chipnuts Technology, a Shanghai, includes two products: SLEC SYSTEM line of 1Team EDA solutions. The 1Team China-based IC design company has and SLEC RTL. SLEC SYSTEM is used by product family is a new kind of design- licensed the ARM7TDMI processor and design teams to check that RTL automation solution, called Predictive ARM926EJ-S processor through the ARM implementations match a system-level Development, which turns the expensive Foundry Program. Chipnuts will design both design, while SLEC RTL checks functional and error-prone activity of system low- and high-end power-efficient equivalence between two versions of an development into a more predictable, multimedia chip sets based on the two RTL design that have dramatically different manageable and reliable process. processors. architectures and timing. Atrenta’s 1Team solutions augment, The Thumb® instruction set-integrated Pricing for SLEC products begins at rather than replace, existing development ARM7TDMI processor provides an $175,000 for a one-year floating license on tools. Added to customers’ established optimized combination of performance, Linux platforms. design flows, Atrenta solutions enhance power and area characteristics. It is ideal for each phase of the system development cycle, low-end mobile handsets running multimedia (See our profile of Calypto in the March from initial planning through design and applications. The ARM926EJ-S processor 2005 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) implementation. incorporates ARM Jazelle® Java Contact: acceleration technology, DSP instruction Devadas Varma, CEO; Tel: 408 850-2300; The first member of the family, 1Team extensions and the memory management unit www.calypto.com. Implement, is a unified physical planning, (MMU) to enable designers to develop design and implementation solution, from Bluespec Adds Co-simulation systems with high performance and rich architectural planning to RTL design to to Its Cycle-Accurate Models application features. These capabilities are initial placement. 1Team Implement well suited to the development of next- includes: Bluespec, a developer of a behavioral generation smart phones, PDAs and synthesis solution for control logic and • Team:Architect — Predictive imple- multimedia decoding devices. complex datapaths, has added co-simulation mentation for IC architects; quickly evalu- Contacts: capabilities to its model-simulation ate design trade-offs such as timing and David Hu, chairman, Chipnuts CEO and technology. The addition of co-simulation area; optimize architectural hand-off to RTL founder; Tel: +86-21-54561360; enables hardware chip designers to use design teams. www.chipnuts.com. Bluespec’s cycle-accurate models in Jun Tan, ARM China president; Tel: +86-10- SystemC or Verilog modeling environments, • Team:Create — Predictive implemen- 82603570; www.arm.com. providing them with the flexibility to tation for RTL designers. Create physically Calypto Launches Industry’s First leverage accelerated models in the most optimized logic designs. Sequential Equivalence Checker appropriate and preferred environment for • Team:Construct — Predictive imple- a given stage in design. Calypto Design Systems has introduced mentation for IC physical implementation its SLEC™ product family, which delivers Bluespec is a startup tackling the teams. Quickly validate timing and area dramatic improvement in IC functional verification challenges associated with projections and rapidly generate high-qual- verification. SLEC offers design teams increased design complexity. While some ity initial floorplans. increased productivity, confidence and companies are attempting to improve the Team Implement is available now. flexibility in making changes to meet their productivity of the verification engineer Atrenta will roll out additional 1Team IC power and performance goals. through better testbenches, Bluespec is products in the coming months. targeting the root cause of the problem by The SLEC product family is the first addressing design complexity itself. The Atrenta launched in 2001 with its commercially available platform that proves company’s toolset elevates the level of SpyGlass Predictive Analysis technology, functional equivalence between two IC abstraction for designers while providing which enables designers to look ahead into designs that contain differences in levels of full hardware synthesis down to RTL without the design cycle and foresee downstream abstraction and sequential behavior. SLEC compromise to the quality of the RTL. The problems. The company has grown to 200 can verify designs with sequential company claims its tool reduces both design people and achieved 66% average differences such as micro-architectural time to verified netlist and design errors by compounded growth for four straight years changes, state machine modifications, up to 50%. (See our profile of Atrenta in the April timing re-balancing, and interface (See our profile of Bluespec in the March 2003 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) differences. The SLEC sequential equivalence checking software is based on 2004 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) Contact: a patent-pending hybrid verification Contact: Bernard Murphy, CTO; Tel: 408 453-3333; George Harper, VP of marketing; Tel: 781 www.atrenta.com. technology that, unlike traditional 250-2200; www.bluespec.com.

May 2005 Page 21 InsideChips.Ventures The Fast Track ... People & Organizations

Fujitsu Microelectronics America Industry Veteran to Serve TransChip Hires VP of Sales Names New President and CEO as President of Xilinx K.K. TransChip, a developer of CMOS Fujitsu Microelectronics America Xilinx has promoted Hitoshi Yoshizawa camera solutions for camera phones, has (FMA) has named Kazuyuki Kawauchi to president of the company’s Japan hired Ronen Avron as VP of sales. Avron president and CEO. Kawauchi assumed his subsidiary, Xilinx, K.K., from his current joined TransChip from Metalink, where he new post on April 1, the beginning of the position as director of sales for consumer was VP of worldwide sales. Prior to that, he company’s fiscal year. He replaces Kazuo and industrial market segments. He succeeds served as regional director of sales and “Ken” Iida, who becomes an advisor to Motihiro Kitajima, who will continue as business development at Gilat Satellite Fujitsu Microelectronics America and will chairman of the board for Xilinx, K.K. Networks, where he was responsible for the remain in the United States for a year. Prior to joining Xilinx, Yoshizawa Asia-Pacific region. Between 1995 and Kawauchi has held various management served in a variety of executive positions 1999, Avron was based in Seoul, Korea, positions at Fujitsu and its affiliates. Before with NEC from 1972 to 2003 in Japan and where he managed the Korean and joining FMA, he was GM of Fujitsu’s the U.S. His most recent post was GM of the Taiwanese offices of Rafael IAA and was Technology Development Division of the ASIC business units for NEC Electronics. responsible for sales, marketing and Electronic Devices Group, where he was in Previously, he held positions at NEC in business development. Earlier, he was sales charge of developing technologies and semiconductor EDA development, ASIC and marketing manager for Asia Pacific at methodologies for 90-nm devices. Before customer field support, and business RND, part of the RAD Group. that, he was VP of Fujitsu’s design development within the ASIC and (See our profile of TransChip in the July methodology and infrastructure group, Communication ASSP. Since April 2002, 2002 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) Worldwide System LSI Technology he ran ASIC business units as GM. (WWSLT), headquartered in Fujitsu Silicon Image Appoints New CFO Microelectronics in the United States. Kawasaki Microelectronics Hires Silicon Image has appointed Darrel Slack Kawauchi first joined Fujitsu in 1978 as an New President and CEO LSI engineer in the CAD Development to the position of CFO. Slack most recently Division. Kawasaki Microelectronics has named served as CFO at Centillium Yukio Yamauchi as president and CEO. Communications. Earlier, he held Yamauchi succeeds Susumu Hirano, who investment-banking positions with Credit Former Cadence Senior VP will remain with K-Micro as a senior Suisse First Boston and Salomon Smith Joins picoChip as CEO executive advisor. Yamauchi, who has more Barney, where he was responsible for a picoChip has appointed Guillaume than 30 years of industry experience, most variety of technology securities underwritings d’Eyssautier to serve as the company’s recently served as K-Micro’s CTO. and M&A advisory engagements. Prior to CEO. d’Eyssautier joins picoChip from this, Slack spent 10 years with the U.S. Air Cadence Design Systems, where he was LogicVision Hires New Force, most recently as commander for the senior VP and GM EMEA. Prior to joining Marketing Director C-12 flight-training program. Cadence, he served as VP for EMEA at Slack replaces CFO Bob Gargus, who IBM Technology Group, which included Paul Scrivens has joined LogicVision as announced his intention to leave the IBM Microelectronics. He also worked for director of marketing for mixed-signal and company in Aug. of 2004. Conexant (Rockwell Semiconductor ETAccess products. Scrivens will report to Systems) and GEC-Plessey Semi- Stephen Pateras, senior director of corporate M2000 Names VP conductors. His early career included product marketing. of Business Development positions at Philips Semiconductors, Scrivens has spent the last 20-plus years Signetics and Matra Harris Semiconductors. in the semiconductor test industry M2000, a Paris, France-based developer Founded in 2000 and located in Bath, specializing in mixed-signal testing. He was of reconfigurable semiconductor IP, has U.K., picoChip provides to equipment a founder of mixed-signal ATE at LTX, named Ali Erdengiz VP of business makers flexible wireless solutions that becoming the VP and linear division development. He will be based in the minimize time to market, costs, and power manager in 1980. He served as VP of company’s Sunnyvale, Calif., office. marketing for Credence Systems’ mixed- consumption. At the heart of the company’s Erdengiz joins M2000 from Altera, signal product line, mixed-signal division offering is a scalable, multi-processor where he was senior director of HardCopy manager for the silicon design validation baseband IC that combines the business operations. Prior to that, he was group at IMS, president of U.S. operations computational density of a dedicated ASIC with Fujitsu Microelectronics America as at SZ Testsysteme, and sales and marketing with the programmability of a traditional director of its “Infotainment” (digital manager for Keithly instruments parametric high-end DSP. television, cable modem, and networking) systems. Before joining the ATE industry, product line, in charge of advanced (See our profile of picoChip in the Aug. Scrivens was a mixed-signal design engineer semiconductor development. He began his 2002 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) and manager in the U.K.

May 2005 Page 22 InsideChips.Ventures career in chip development with Thomson- Instruments, he was VP of engineering at (See our profile of eSilicon in the Oct. CSF France (currently ST Microelectronics) Interphase and EXFO (formerly Gnubi 2003 issue of InsideChips.Ventures.) before moving to Fairchild Semiconductor Communication), both of Dallas, Tex. and National Semiconductor. Bay Microsystems Adds New M2000 is developing state-of-the-art Silicon Laboratories Promotes Executives to Management Team Wireless Veteran to Vice President configurable logic technology for the Jeff Wolf has joined Bay Microsystems reconfigurable SOC market. Silicon Laboratories has promoted Dan as senior VP of marketing, and the company Rabinovitsj to VP of the company’s wireless also named Gerry Jankauskas CTO. Tower Taps Applied Materials products group. Rabinovitsj is one of the Prior to joining Bay, Wolf was VP of Veteran for CEO Position founding members of Silicon Laboratories’ business development at CPU Technology, Tower Semiconductor has appointed wireless team and has been serving in senior a company delivering high-performance Russell Ellwanger CEO of the company. leadership positions since the group’s embedded multiprocessing SOCs for Most recently, Ellwanger was group VP at inception. He replaces Ed Healy, who served government and commercial applications. Applied Materials Corporation. He has as VP of wireless products since the group Prior to that, he was VP of worldwide sales served as GM of Applied Global Services was created and was one of the company’s and operations at Ubicom, and he served at (AGS), GM of the CMP and Electroplating earliest contributors to the wireless business. LSI Logic for 16 years in a range of Business Group, co-GM of the Metrology Healy is leaving the company to take the marketing and sales roles, including VP of and Inspection Business Group and VP of position of CEO at a non-competing startup. marketing and VP and GM of Pan Asia. the 300-mm Program Office. Ellwanger has Rabinovitsj joined Silicon Laboratories Jankauskas has been serving as Bay’s also held executive positions at Novellus seven years ago and has been responsible VP of system architecture since 2003. Prior Systems and research & development for marketing, business development and to Bay, he was chief architect at Cratos management positions at Philips new product development across multiple Networks and systems architect at 3Com Semiconductor. design groups. Prior to joining Silicon (U.S. Robotics) Carrier Systems Group. He Laboratories, he was the director of also worked at GTE in systems and Texas Instruments Expands marketing at Indesign, and also served as development engineering roles applying RFID Management Team director of marketing for Oasis Silicon commercial networking equipment to Systems and product marketing manager military applications. Texas Instruments has expanded its for AMD. RFID management team with the addition Bay Microsystems develops of three new director positions. The eSilicon Taps Altera Exec programmable packet processors, software company has named Shawn Rogers director to Head Marketing and network elements for high-performance of wireless commerce and Tag-it products; intelligent networks. Mikael Ahlund director of RFID healthcare; eSilicon, a supplier of custom ICs, has and William Santini director of technology hired Hugh Durdan as VP of marketing. AGEIA Adds Two New Execs development. Durdan, a 25-year veteran of the to Management Team semiconductor industry, formerly served as Rogers is a founding member and chief VP of the CCI and Technical Services AGEIA Technologies has appointed technical editor of the High Speed Backplane business group at Altera, where he grew startup veteran Andy Keane to the post of Initiative (HSBI) and a founding member of revenue from $350 million to $550 million VP of marketing, and games professional the Reduced Gigabit Media Independent in two years, booked more than $1 billion Kathy Schoback to the position of VP of Interface (RGMII) Consortium. Since 1999, worth of design wins and spear-headed content acquisition. he has been a contributing member of the Altera’s expansion into the digital consumer IEEE 802.3 Ethernet Standards group. Keane has nearly 20 years of experience market. Prior to Altera, he served as VP and in the hardware technology industry, holding Ahlund began his career as a business GM of the computer and consumer divisions executive-level marketing positions at analyst and planning manager at General at LSI Logic, as well as various management companies such as 3Dfx Interactive, Electric and, during his 17 years at the and engineering roles at Mylex and Digital Morphics Technologies, PMC-Sierra and company, also served as marketing and Equipment Corporation. Quantum Effect Devices. product-development manager and GM of GE Medical’s ultrasound business. Most ESilicon is a pioneer of the new “fabless Schoback currently serves as chair recently, he was a consultant to medical ASIC” business model, in which the emeritus for the International Game equipment manufacturers. company serves as a kind of general Developers Association, and is a member contractor for semiconductor manu- of the GDC advisory board. She has nearly Santini was previously director of facturing. The company basically manages 15 years of experience in the gaming development for DSL client premise the details involved in producing working industry, serving the majority of her career equipment in the Broadband silicon, enabling its customers to focus on at Sega of America and Eidos. Communications Group at Texas their design-related core competencies. Instruments. Before joining Texas

May 2005 Page 23 InsideChips.Ventures Companies Mentioned in This Issue

A K Actrans Systems ...... 7 Kawasaki Microelectronics ...... 22 AGEIA Technologies ...... 23 Kisel Microelectronics ...... 8 Agere Systems ...... 7 L AKER Technology Taiwan ...... 8 Akustica ...... 6 Lattice Semiconductor ...... 20 Alliance Semiconductor ...... 20 LogicVision ...... 22 ARM ...... 21 M ATMI ...... 8 M2000...... 22 Atrenta ...... 21 Memec ...... 9 Auvitek International ...... 15 Morpho Technologies ...... 7 Avnet...... 9 N B National Semiconductor ...... 20 Bay Microsystems ...... 23 NEC Electronics ...... 20 Bluespec ...... 21 Nortel ...... 5 C P C-DOT ...... 20 Pericom Semiconductor...... 8 Calypto Design Systems ...... 21 Philips ...... 20 ChipMOS Technologies ...... 9 picoChip ...... 22 Chipnuts Technology ...... 21 Ponté Solutions ...... 19 Ciclon Semiconductor Device ...... 7 Provigent...... 5 Cirrus Logic ...... 3 Communications Research Centre Canada (CRC) ...... 20 R CyOptics ...... 6 Rambus ...... 9 E S eASIC ...... 5 Sasken Communication Technologies ...... 5 ElectriPHY ...... 17 Siano Mobile Silicon ...... 5, 16 Elixent...... 5 Silicon Image ...... 3, 22 eSilicon ...... 23 Silicon Laboratories ...... 23 Exar...... 5 Silicon Optix...... 13 Silicon Storage Technology (SST) ...... 7, 8 F SiRF Technology ...... 8 FineArch ...... 18 Synplicity ...... 20 FlipChip International ...... 20 Forward Concepts ...... 10 T Freescale Semiconductor ...... 20 T-RAM...... 8 Fujitsu Microelectronics America ...... 22 TAK Imaging ...... 9 TDK Semiconductor Corporation ...... 7 G TeraChip ...... 6 Gartner ...... 10 TeraVicta Technologies ...... 7 GDA Technologies ...... 9 Texas Instruments ...... 23 Golden Gate Capital ...... 7 Tower Semiconductor ...... 23 H TransChip ...... 22 Hytek Microsystems ...... 3 TransDimension...... 12 TriQuint Semiconductor ...... 6 I W IBM...... 11 IDC ...... 11 Wavesat...... 20 In-Stat ...... 11 X Infineon Technologies ...... 5 X-EMI...... 8 Xelerated ...... 8 Xilinx ...... 22

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