imec announces that GlobalFoundries (GF) has joined imec’s Automotive Chiplet Program (ACP) as a foundry partner.

Semiconductor and system companies Infineon, Silicon Box, STATS ChipPAC, and Japanese autonomous driving technology developer TIER IV have also committed to join ACP. This expands imec’s network and further accelerating the development and adoption of a cutting-edge chiplet architecture tailored to the unique demands of the automotive industry.

As vehicles evolve into high-performance, software-defined platforms, traditional monolithic chip designs are increasingly challenged to meet the demands of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), autonomous driving and immersive in-vehicle infotainment. Chiplet architectures offer a scalable, flexible and cost-effective alternative that can be seamlessly integrated into the sophisticated compute systems of software-defined vehicles.

Imec’s Automotive Chiplet Program brings together key stakeholders from across the automotive and semiconductor ecosystems in a pre-competitive research initiative aimed at accelerating the adoption of chiplet architectures and packaging technologies in next-generation vehicles, meeting automotive-grade requirements for safety and reliability.

As a foundry partner, GF will provide advanced manufacturing capabilities, a differentiated technology portfolio and GF’s global footprint of fabs in the U.S., Europe and Asia to support the development and manufacturing of the ACP’s automotive-ready, chiplet-based platforms.

“Joining imec’s ACP aligns with our mission to enable innovation in automotive electronics with differentiated technology solutions for the next-generation of safe, connected and autonomous vehicles,” says Sudipto Bose, VP of GF’s automotive end market. “We’re excited to contribute our deep manufacturing expertise, global manufacturing footprint and portfolio of silicon-proven, automotive-grade technologies to support the ACP’s focus in developing reference chiplet architectures and the qualification of interconnect technologies that meet stringent automotive standards.”

“Expanding the involvement of companies across the automotive ecosystem strengthens our ability to develop chiplet architectures and interconnect technologies that are tailored to the needs of the industry and validated under real-world manufacturing conditions, which helps to derisk and accelerate deployment for the entire industry,” adds Bart Placklé, VP automotive at imec.