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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
XILINX UNVEILS REVOLUTIONARY FPGA ARCHITECTURE,
ENABLES
NEXT-GENERATION PLATFORM FPGAS
New Application Specific Modular Block (ASMBL) architecture enables
multiple
domain-specific platforms
SAN JOSE, Calif., December 8, 2003 Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ:XLNX),
the world's leading supplier of programmable logic solutions and
inventor of the FPGA, today unveiled a revolutionary new architecture
that will enable rapid, cost-effective deployment of multiple domain-specific
FPGA platforms with an optimal blend of features. At the heart of
the ASMBL architecture is a modular framework of silicon subsystems,
enabling a new FPGA development methodology for rapid and cost-effective
deployment of platforms targeted to different application domains.
As a result, customers will have a greater selection of devices,
and will benefit from an up to 10x increase in capability for a
given price point.
Xilinx plans to base future Xilinx Platform FPGAs on the new architecture.
Built on more than 100 new technical innovations, the next generation
Virtex Series Platform, slated for first half of 2004, will be the
first FPGA family to embody the new architecture. The new domain-specific
devices will deliver more than 1B transistors in a single device.
With today's news, Xilinx expects to radically alter the technical
and business dynamics for the $4.3B* programmable logic and $33B*
ASIC, Standard Logic, and 32/16 bit micro controller markets, setting a new price-capability standard for
platform-based system design.
"This next generation, highly flexible platform FPGA architecture
is the logical evolution of Xilinx technology - and is poised to
revolutionize the electronics industry. Today's announcement is
yet another indication that Xilinx will remain a key player in the
industry forefront," said Jerry Worchel, senior analyst at
In-Stat/MDR. "With this new architecture Xilinx has once again
exhibited its ability to radically address designers' most pressing
needs, giving them more alternatives than even before and the highest
value solution at a given price point."
"The ASMBL architecture holds the key to accelerating our broad
expansion of platform FPGAs into markets previously served by ASICs
and ASSPs," said Erich Goetting, vice president and general
manager of the Advanced Product Group at Xilinx. "With ASMBL,
Xilinx is adopting a highly-efficient FPGA development model for
delivering off-the-shelf, flexible solutions ideally suited to different
application domains."
ASMBL Architecture Overview
The new highly modular ASMBL architecture makes use of advanced
flip-chip packaging technology and eliminates geometric layout constraints
associated with traditional chip design such as hard dependencies
between I/O count and fabric array size. The ASMBL architecture
also addresses the increasingly more stringent requirements for
on-chip power and ground distribution by allowing power and ground
to be placed anywhere on the chip. As a result, Xilinx can significantly
accelerate the development time and increase reliability when developing
platform FPGAs.
"Moore's Law as well as advances in packaging technologies
continue to propel programmable logic to new heights of capacity
and performance" said Wim Roelandts, chairman and chief executive
officer at Xilinx, Inc. "The ASMBL architecture will allow
Xilinx to further penetrate the $38 billion dollar logic markets with aggressive cost points never before possible. Our customers
will benefit through significantly increased capabilities for given
price points, greater flexibility and lower costs."
As FPGAs continue to assume more and more of the ASIC and ASSP markets,
Xilinx FPGAs are being proliferated into many new types of applications.
The ASMBL architecture, developed as a result of close cooperation
with users in traditional FPGA and ASIC markets, will allow Xilinx
to quickly react to changing customer needs. With the delivery of
the next-generation Virtex Series, Xilinx customers will be able
to choose the right platform most suitable for their application,
with the optimal mix of logic, memory, serial I/O, parallel I/O,
embedded processors, DSP, clock management, hard IP, mixed signal,
and other functionality.
Building on the success of the Virtex Series
Since its 1998 introduction, the company has shipped over 10 million
Virtex devices. The Virtex family has generated over $2 billon in
cumulative revenue, significantly adding to Xilinx's record-breaking
gains in PLD market share. The Virtex Series is the most popular
high performance FPGA in the industry, with nearly 80 percent of
the annualized business for FPGAs at 1.5V and below. This market
segment share is more than four times higher than the next closest
competitor.
Download Images here:
ASMBL Image1
ASMBL Image2
About Xilinx
Xilinx is the worldwide leader in complete programmable logic
solutions. For more information, visit www.xilinx.com.
* Market Data Source: Dataquest forecast for 2006
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