GF 22FDX Enables Ultra Low Power MRAM Processor

Efficient, a US processor designer, has recently announced a significant strategic partnership with GlobalFoundries (GF). This collaboration will involve the production of Efficient's chip on the advanced 22FDX process developed by GF. The partnership aims to leverage GF's expertise in US manufacturing and global market reach to enhance the capabilities of Efficient's Fabric processor architecture for low power edge devices.

Already in the works, Efficient is engaging with select customers for early access and sampling of the GF 22nm low power silicon on insulator process. The integration of MRAM memory into the chip is anticipated to be completed by the summer of 2025, promising enhanced performance and efficiency for a wide range of applications.

The Fabric processor, a product of Efficient's innovative approach, is tailored for low power general-purpose processing across various sectors such as the Internet of Things, wearable technology, health devices, space systems, and security and defense applications. This processor is designed to offer energy-efficient solutions for tasks ranging from machine learning to data analytics.

Efficient, which originated as a spin-out from Carnegie Mellon University, has secured over $16 million in funding to support the development of the Fabric processor. This cutting-edge technology enables energy conservation in diverse applications, including machine learning-enabled extreme-edge machine vision, continuous audio intelligence, and sensory and signals intelligence. Developers can utilize popular embedded languages like C and TFlite to create sophisticated intelligence applications incorporating AI, ML, signal processing, and data analytics.

The partnership with GF will introduce magnetic MRAM memory and Adaptive Body Biasing (ABB) on SOI to further reduce power consumption in the chip. Brandon Lucia, Co-Founder and CEO of Efficient, expressed his enthusiasm for the collaboration, emphasizing the company's commitment to revolutionizing general-purpose computing with energy efficiency at its core. Faisal Saleem, Senior Vice President of End-Markets at GF, echoed this sentiment, highlighting the potential of the partnership to meet the increasing demand for energy-efficient intelligent edge devices in various industries.