Synopsys to add generative AI to design tools

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Synopsys is looking to add generative AI to its EDA tools to boost chip design productivity.

www.eenewseurope.com/, Aug. 21, 2023 – 

The company already uses a range of AI techniques in its tools from deep neural networks (DNNs) to recursive neural networks (RNNs). These are incorporated into the DSO.ai, VSI.ai and TSO.ai tools that have been used for well over 100 chip tapeouts.

Now the company is looking at the transformer network technologies used in generative AI (Gen-AI) to further enhance the tools says founder and retiring CEO Aart de Geus.

"We intend to harness Gen-AI capabilities into Synopsys.ai. We see this delivering further advances in design assistance, design exploration, and design generation," said de Geus.

• Synopsys adds AI to its verification and test tools
• Synopsys sees 100 commercial tape-outs using AI .
• Generative AI provides 5x boost for RTL design

Generative AI uses transformers in large language models for a variety of applications, from chat bots such as ChatGPT to coding co-pilot tools. These tools can be used with programming languages to enhance engineer productivity, from finding bugs to adding documentation. The tools can also be used to generate Verilog code for synthesis of loci functions, for example automatically generating RISC-V microcontroller cores with associated test and verification harnesses.

Synopsys has a large database of IP in Verilog that can be used to train LLMs to improve the accuracy of generative AI frameworks to produce more reliable designs and avoid the problems of hallucination where the frameworks invent results.

"On the design flow spectrum from optionality to optimality, in other words, moving from many options in early architectures, to highly-tuned, error-free tape-outs, Gen-AI techniques will augment the exploration, accelerate design choices, and automate some design generation, thus broadening the dimensions of intelligence in Synopsys.ai."

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