Altium heads deeper into distribution with new tools

EDA tool developer Altium, now part of Renesas Electronics, is to launch three new products building on its 365 cloud-based platform.

The deal was only confirmed in August this year, but Altium will be showing the Discover, Develop and Lifecycle tools at the electronica 2024 exhibition next month.

Altium Discover aims to provide a trust-based real time collaborative environment for semiconductor manufacturers, distributors, and product developers on a unified platform.

The tool aims to bring the supply chain together from discovery of devices through to production. The platform not only streamlines workflows but also builds trust in the components that can be used for a design by ensuring transparency, secure engagement, and accountability throughout the product lifecycle.

The digital rights management tools in the platform allow chip makers, distributors and engineers to securely share information and work together in real time, knowing that their data and intellectual property are protected. This is a key issue for reducing friction in the supply chain or secure handling of intellectual property, ensuring each participant’s contributions are recognized and protected.

The Discover platform also includes tools for evaluating, comparing, and selecting components, accelerating the transition from design to production. Semiconductor manufacturers gain direct access to market insights and engineers, allowing them to tailor offerings more effectively and adopt faster go-to-market strategies. Distributors benefit from secure design-win registration, improving customer engagement and ensuring traceability from concept to production.

Altium Develop is designed for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) to unify electronics, mechanical, and software design in a single workflow. This integrated approach supports concurrent engineering, reducing development cycles and costs while driving efficiency and innovation. Altium Develop will provide turnkey capabilities for SMEs that are easy to use and easy to buy.

Altium Lifecycle provides enterprises with comprehensive lifecycle control, ensuring precise management throughout the product journey. With full compliance and audit trail capabilities, Altium Lifecycle helps enterprises meet regulatory requirements and maintain high reliability across the entire lifecycle of their products.

“This is a historical milestone for both Renesas and Altium as we take another important step forward in bringing enhanced user experience for electronics system designers,” said Hidetoshi Shibata, CEO of Renesas as the deal closed.

“The integrated and open electronics system design and lifecycle management platform we aim to build together will make electronics accessible to broader market, for any enterprises regardless of their size or industry. I want to reaffirm that our commitment to upholding data security and compliance of the Altium customers will continue to be our top priority. With the addition of Altium’s design software and cloud platform capabilities, we are excited to change the future of electronics system design with Aram and his industry-leading, talented software engineering team” 

Altium CEO Aram Mirkazemi has also assumed the role of Senior Vice President and Head of Renesas’ Software & Digitalization.