Alphawave Semi Tapes Out Cutting-Edge 7nm Multi-Protocol I/O Chiplet

Alphawave Semi has achieved a significant milestone by taping out the industry’s first off-the-shelf multi-protocol I/O connectivity chiplet on TSMC’s advanced 7nm process. This innovative chiplet integrates Alphawave IP with cutting-edge technologies such as 800G Ethernet, PCI Express 6.0, CXL 3.x, and UCIe Revision 1.1. The primary target for this chiplet is chips designed for AI data centers and high-performance computing clusters.

The newly developed IO chiplet boasts an impressive total bandwidth of up to 1.6 Tbit/s, featuring 16 lanes of multi-standard PHY in a versatile combination of mixed operating modes. This breakthrough offering from Alphawave Semi comes as IP starts shipping, signaling a new era in connectivity solutions for the semiconductor industry.

This development sets the stage for a robust and open ecosystem utilizing UCIe as a die-to-die connectivity subsystem. Alphawave Semi emphasizes that the design leverages IP that has already been validated in silicon, marking a strategic shift from being solely an IP supplier to becoming a silicon supplier. Additionally, the company is actively working on a chiplet that incorporates ARM Neoverse N3 processor cores, which would complement the IO silicon seamlessly.

According to Mohit Gupta, the general manager for custom silicon and IP at Alphawave Semi, "The successful tape-out of this off-the-shelf, multi-protocol I/O connectivity chiplet showcases our expertise in leveraging the TSMC 3DFabric ecosystem to integrate advanced interfaces. This achievement represents a significant step forward in our mission to provide ultra-high-performance connectivity solutions for the critical data communications infrastructure that drives the digital world."

Percy Chang, Director of Emerging Business Development at TSMC, also weighed in on the milestone, stating, "The tape-out of the Alphawave Semi multi-protocol I/O connectivity chiplet on our 7nm process exemplifies TSMC's pivotal role in enabling semiconductor platforms crucial for high-performance, high-throughput applications. Collaborating with VCA partners like Alphawave Semi, we are committed to nurturing a vibrant and open chiplet ecosystem that delivers the high-bandwidth connectivity and compute silicon essential for HPC and AI applications."