Altair set to acquire Metrics Design Automation
Michigan-based computational intelligence firm Altair has entered into a definitive agreement to buy Metrics Design Automation, which specialises in functional simulation and design verification for semiconductor companies.
Metrics Design's USP is its 'simulation as a service (SaaS)' business model. This provides an affordable alternative to typically high licensing costs, which can require thousands of seats to run a single chip simulation. These tools also run on desktop machines, and are not typically cloud-native or cloud-enabled.
Altair believes that the The Metrics digital simulator, DSim, when combined with Altair’s Silicon Debug Tools, can deliver an advanced simulation environment with superior simulation and debug capabilities in the EDA and semiconductor space.
The combined solution can be run as a desktop app, on own servers, or in the cloud and can run very large regressions with the customer paying only for what they use. It supports System Verilog and VHDL RTL for digital circuits targeting application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Thus, simulations can be run concurrently and at scale, removing massive amounts of time and costs from the traditional design cycle.
“By combining our best-in-class software with Metrics’ cloud-based simulation as a service, we are excited to bring this groundbreaking technology to our EDA and semiconductor customers,” said James R. Scapa, founder and chief executive officer, Altair. “Altair is unique in our ability to merge simulation with industry-leading workload and workflow optimization technology, serving as a true partner for companies embracing innovative tools and resource delivery models in this highly specialised and high-stakes industry. Customers now have a choice in design verification.”
