Embedded Executive Podcast

Avnet’s Embedded Solutions group is undergoing a change, with a new name attached to it. Known as Tria, the group will be responsible for a range of branded hardware modules, boards, and systems and all the software that comes with them. That combines the company’s vast tech support network and state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities. Why did Avnet feel the need to make this move, and what does it mean to the developer, today and down the road? These are some of the questions I asked Thomas Staudinger, President of Tria and Avnet’s Embedded Solutions division, on this week’s Embedded Executives podcast.

As you might expect, the code base in the software-defined vehicle is growing in leaps and bounds, with more features being added and the functionality within those features growing (and becoming more complex). Is the downside to that ballooning code base the fact that more holes are being introduced to welcome hackers? That’s where my discussion began with Priyanka Viswanathan, the Director of Quality Functional Safety and Cybersecurity at SiFive. Check out this week’s Embedded Executives podcast to hear what she had to say on the matter.

Do you know what a software-defined vehicle (SDV) is? You likely have your definition, which may or may not be the “right” definition. Just getting that baseline is where my discussion started with Ray Notarantonio, Infineon’s Senior Director of Vehicle User Experience in this week’s Embedded Executives podcast. We explored what’s possible with an SDV, when you should expect it, and what’s holding up the various aspects.

Memory technology continues to move along at a healthy pace. Innovations continue to come, and there does not seem to be a slowdown on that horizon. Whether it’s NAND, NOR, or something else, you can expect to see advances in densities, speeds, costs, and so on. To get the lay of the land, I spoke to one of the pioneers of memory technology, Miin Wu, the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Macronix International. The old phrase “Miin has forgotten more about memory technology than I’ll ever know” certainly applies here. Here is what he had to say on this week’s Embedded Executives podcast.

Shantanu Bhalerao, Vice President of Bluetooth Products for Infineon Technologies, shares insights on the evolution and versatility of Bluetooth technology as it celebrates its 25th anniversary. He discusses its impressive range of up to five kilometers and advantages over Wi-Fi in various applications, including industrial automation. Bhalerao also debunks common myths, emphasizing Bluetooth's low power consumption and innovative health solutions, like Bluetooth-enabled patches for drug-free migraine treatments.

Everything is connected, everything is smart, and AI controls everything. And it all comes back to the “smart Edge.” While these statements seem to be a bit over-arching, there’s a lot of truth to them. But building and then designing around that smart Edge can be quite tricky. Add TinyML to the equation, and it should become clearer (well, maybe). To better understand what that means exactly, I spoke to Amir Panush, the CEO of Ceva on this week’s Embedded Executives podcast.

The software-defined vehicle (SDV) requires lots of horsepower, and in many cases, extensive use of AI. Is the world ready for this application? More importantly, are the automakers ready? This is the avenue I went down with Frantz Saintellemy, the President and CEO of Leddar Tech. We discussed the ecosystem, the available products, the activities in different regions, and the prevailing perceptions in this week’s Embedded Executives podcast.

Many of the memory suppliers choose a niche to be an expert. It may be automotive, consumer, industrial, medical, etc. In the case of Apacer Technology, the company has chosen to do it all. In my discussion with Gibson Chen, the General Manager of Apacer, I challenged whether that’s the best approach, trying to serve just about any market. Listen to this week’s Embedded Executives podcast and decide for yourself if that’s the right strategy.

The latest wearable medical devices are designed to help consumers make better decisions regarding their care. Until recently, the space has been somewhat limited. Size and power were the two biggest constraints. Those constraints aren’t going away, but they are definitely being lessened thanks to some of the latest innovations on the semiconductor side. To hear more about these innovations, I spoke to Andrew Baker, the Co-Founder and CEO of Orca Semiconductor, a startup in the emerging connected health arena. Check out this week’s Embedded Executives podcast to learn more.

If the software-defined vehicle (SDV) comes off as planned, life for consumers becomes a whole lot easier. “If” is the key word in that sentence, and there’s tons of debate as to when that might actually happen. To understand what the SDV is—and it means different things to different people—I spoke to Suraj Gajendra, the Vice President of Automotive Products for Arm. As the IP provider for many of the Tier 1 silicon providers in the automotive space, the company has a big say in what it’ll actually look like and when it’ll happen. Hear what Suraj had to say on this week’s Embedded Executives podcast.