Denso invests in quadric.io to further autonomous driving technology

Japan-based semiconductor IP core developer and designer, Denso Group company took stakes in quadric.io, a startup company based in Burlingame, California. Denso looks to further develop quadric.io’s edge processing units (EPU). These are high-performance semiconductors that could be used as a foundation for enabling automated driving technology. Denso has bought the stakes through NSITEXE, one of its group companies.

One of NSITEXE’s focuses is developing a Data Flow Processor (DFP), a new type of processor different from conventional processors such as central processing units (CPUs) and graphic processing units (GPUs). The DFP can rapidly perform multiple complex calculations by instantaneously optimizing calculating areas according to the amount and content of information, while minimizing power consumption and heat generation. NSITEXE is aiming to commercialise the DFP in the first half of the 2020s.

NSITEXE has taken a stake in quadric.io because of its industrial EPU development technology, which it will incorporate into in-vehicle specifications required for automated driving. The quadric.io’s real-time end-to-end edge computing technology was designed to accelerate the development of smart edge products like cars and robots that require instantaneous processing of a large amount of calculations while minimizing power consumption and latency. NSITEXE aims to achieve instant processing of both complex and large amounts of calculations to extend the ability of DFP by accelerating development of quadric.io’s real-time end-to-end edge computing technology.