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To: Elmer who wrote (47777)	2/13/1998 11:57:00 AM
From: John Koligman	Respond to of 186894

Apologies if this has been posted already. Intel invests in design tool company By Andy Santoni InfoWorld Electric Posted at 6:30 PM PT, Feb 12, 1998 Continuing to spread its wealth around Silicon Valley and beyond, Intel this week made a minority investment in Abstract, a supplier of electronic design automation (EDA) tools for integrated circuits. Abstract becomes one of more than 100 companies in Intel's portfolio, which now totals more than $500 million in investments, according to Intel executives. The chip giant has invested in companies, such as Abstract, that provide technologies Intel uses, and in companies that are developing hardware and software products that will spur the use of computers. Abstract is developing EDA software that performs formal verification, a process that checks the computer-generated design of an integrated circuit against the written definition of the chip's function, explained Peter Glaskowsky, senior analyst at MicroDesign Resources, in Sunnyvale, Calif. Engineers use the technology at various stages of a circuit design to ensure pieces of the chip are designed correctly. Formal verification does not uncover errors in the definitions of each function block, or in the manufacturing process that follows, Glaskowsky noted. As chips become more complex, formal verification is becoming a necessity, Glaskowsky said. He noted that a processor such as the 64-bit Merced chip Intel is developing can contain tens of millions of transistors, and a graphics accelerator can be equally complex. These devices can take months to verify with today's tools, Glaskowsky said. For example, one graphics chip can take six months to go through the process. And without verification, errors in design have to be corrected in silicon, which is much more expensive. "Formal verification is becoming very important," Glaskowsky said. "Anything less is going to be risky." Today, circuit design has become a software project, Glaskowsky explained. The function blocks within a chip are equivalent to subroutines, he added. Intel uses formal verification as part of its validation process, said Jerry Budelman, engineering director at Intel, in Hillsboro, Ore. It is one of the pre-silicon stages of validation, where 95 percent of the bugs in a new design are uncovered, he said. Intel uses various techniques to validate a circuit design before it goes into production, then focuses on improving the reliability of working silicon, Budelman said. Once Intel introduces the product, the validation process uncovers and corrects errors. Abstract Inc., in Fremont, Calif., can be reached at (510) 445-4321 or abstract-inc.com. Intel Corp., in Santa Clara, Calif., can be reached at (800) 628-8686 or intel.com. Go to the Week's Top News Stories Please direct your comments to InfoWorld Electric Deputy News Editor Carolyn April Copyright c 1998 InfoWorld Media Group Inc. InfoWorld Electric is a member of IDG.net \| SiteMap \| Search \| PageOne \| Conferences \| Reader/Ad Services \| \| Enterprise Careers \| Opinions \| Test Center \| Features \| \| Forums \| Interviews \| InfoWorld Print \| InfoQuote \| John