Frontgrade and Vorago Collaborate on Autonomous AI in Space

Frontgrade Technologies and processor supplier Vorago Technologies have joined forces to develop scalable AI platforms tailored for autonomous space systems. The collaboration aims to create reference designs based on Vorago’s space-certified processors, enabling in-orbit autonomy, real-time data processing, and advanced AI capabilities.

Moreover, the two companies will synchronize their long-term technical roadmaps to seamlessly integrate Vorago’s processing architectures into a series of compute modules offered by Frontgrade, formerly known as CAES. These modules can be customized to support a wide array of mission profiles, ranging from small satellites to crewed exploration systems.

Vorago has introduced a cutting-edge dual-core ARM-based system on chip (SoC) named VA7230, featuring two Cortex-A72 cores clocked at up to 1.5 GHz. Equipped with L1 and shared 1 MB L2 caches with ECC error correction, a NEON SIMD data engine, and an FPU for space AI applications, the SoC also boasts an integrated 3D GPU delivering up to 10.4 GFLOPS of performance. It supports OpenCL 1.2, OpenGL ES 3.1, and includes 256KB on-chip SRAM.

• Vorago in edge computing deals for space
• ARM SoC with GPU for space AI

Anticipate forthcoming announcements from the collaboration, including new product releases, reference designs, and evaluation platforms in the upcoming months. Tommy Reed, Chief Growth Officer at Frontgrade Technologies, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, stating, “This joint effort underscores Frontgrade’s dedication to innovation and our belief in the strength of collaboration. By harnessing VORAGO’s rad-hard processing architecture, we are poised to expedite the deployment of scalable, space-qualified computing platforms that cater to the evolving requirements of commercial and government space missions.”

• Neuromorphic AI for space
• 7nm RISC-V chip for space

Ken Obuszewski, Vice President of Business Development and Product at VORAGO, emphasized the increasing demand for reliable, high-performance computing in space systems as they become more autonomous and data-intensive. He highlighted the significance of partnering with a leading industry player like Frontgrade to develop solutions that will drive the future of space exploration and commercial space infrastructure.