The Rise of Open-Source in the Semiconductor Industry

Global Adoption of RISC-V

RISC-V has played a significant role in the open-source revolution in chip design. Compared to proprietary ISAs such as Intel’s x86, RISC-V offers an affordable, autonomous, flexible, and extensible platform for innovation. RISC-V is being globally adopted at a rapid pace, particularly in Europe and China.

European Commitment

The European Union has made significant investments in developing and adopting RISC-V to enhance technological self-sufficiency. Through these investments, the EU also aims to reduce dependency on proprietary technologies in the semiconductor industry. The European Chips Act, which came into force on September 21, 2023, allocates €43 billion to boost Europe’s semiconductor production capacity from 10% to 20% by 2030. Projects, such as the three-year TRISTAN consortium aim to create a repository of industrial-quality RISC-V chip designs for various domains, including automotive, industrial, and healthcare ¹.

 China’s Strategic Move

Leading Chinese chip designers, including Alibaba’s T-Head and VeriSilicon, have formed a RISC-V patent alliance to promote semiconductor self-sufficiency. Members of the alliance have a mutual agreement not to sue each other over patent infringement. Such an arrangement allows the sharing of patented technologies by the members thereby promoting a healthy open-source ecosystem. Further, this collective approach is designed to mitigate risks from international patent disputes and accelerate development ^2,3.

Democratizing Integrated Circuit (IC) Design

Open-source ISAs lower entry barriers to IC design, attracting universities and research institutions.

Educational Access

Universities and research institutions, such as the University of Michigan, are participating in initiatives that provide open-source process design kits (PDKs) and electronic design automation (EDA) tools. This enables researchers and startups to innovate without any major costs ⁴.

Cost Reduction

Programs like the cooperative agreement between the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Google allow for the fabrication of chips at no cost to developers, potentially saving hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Impact on the Patent Landscape

The open-source movement is redefining the value and scope of protection offered by patents in the semiconductor industry:

Phasing out of Basic ISA Patents

With RISC-V easily available, patents on fundamental instruction sets are losing relevance and becoming less valuable. Companies may no longer rely on these patents as core technologies become part of open-source. The core elements of chip design are now part of the public domain, reducing the exclusivity that such patents once provided.

Expansion of Prior Art

Open-source projects contribute significantly to prior art, making it more challenging to obtain overly broad patents. Further, existing open-source technologies can invalidate new patent claims, pushing companies to protect inventions beyond the foundational level.

Certain types of patent information are losing relevance:

Generic Hardware Designs

Patents covering standard hardware implementations without advancements over open-source designs are less likely to be granted or hold significant value.

Proprietary ISAs

As open-source ISAs like RISC-V become mainstream, the competitive advantage of proprietary ISAs diminishes, affecting the associated patent portfolios.

 Strategic Patent Filing in the Open-Source Era

Companies need to adapt their patent strategies to maintain IP protection in the semiconductor industry.

Focus on Manufacturing and Fabrication Processes

In the past, semiconductor manufacturing and design were geographically and functionally separated. Foundries in Taiwan and other East Asian countries focused on manufacturing, while design houses in the U.S. and Europe concentrated on chip design. Manufacturing processes were often kept as trade secrets. In the last few years, lines between foundries and design houses are blurring ⁷. Companies are increasingly protecting manufacturing processes through patents ⁸ rather than relying solely on trade secrets. This shift is partly due to an increase in patent filings from pure-play foundries, particularly on the device side. For example, TSMC has seen a rise in patent filings in Europe, indicating a strategic move to protect their innovations ⁵. Additionally, patents on novel semiconductor fabrication processes, materials science breakthroughs, and three-dimensional (3D) packaging technologies offer a competitive edge.

Process Optimizations

Innovations in semiconductors that enhance yield, reduce defects, and provide new form factors are another avenue for patent protection. Such innovations are highly valuable for the companies and difficult for competitors to replicate. By optimizing production processes, companies can achieve higher output quality and efficiency, which provides lower manufacturing costs and less wastage of materials. These optimizations often involve advanced techniques in materials engineering, precision lithography, and thermal management for semiconductor applications. For example, inventive cooling solutions or defect detection methods can significantly improve chip reliability which may be crucial for industries like automotive or healthcare, where failure rates must be exceptionally low. Patents on these inventive solutions and methods protect companies’ proprietary processes or techniques and create a barrier to entry for competitors.

Manufacturing Equipment Patents

The production of semiconductor devices involves highly specialized machinery requiring significant capital expenditure. Conventionally, companies such as Applied Materials and ASML designed these machines. However, these companies placed limited emphasis on patent protection due to the lower volume of machines sold and high barriers to entry for their competitors. In recent years, there has been an expected increase in patent filings related to manufacturing equipment, reflecting the growing importance of protecting these assets ⁷. 

Specialized Implementations and Applications

Focusing on patenting unique innovations that offer substantial improvements:

Application-Specific Patents

Companies are increasingly seeking patents for industry-specific applications of their products. For instance, Texas Instruments (TI) obtained a patent for an automotive display validation technique (US Patent No. 11,284,062 B2). While TI’s product is likely a system-on-a-chip (SoC), the patent protects its application in the automotive sector. This approach not only adds value but also helps protect customers by offering proprietary solutions tailored to specific industries ^{6, 7}. Custom protection for sectors like automotive, aerospace, healthcare, and cybersecurity can provide proprietary value and protect market niches.

Software and Firmware Innovations

As hardware becomes standardized, software optimization becomes crucial:

Hardware-Software Co-Design

Patents on methodologies that tightly integrate hardware and software for performance gains are significant.

Differentiating with Integrated Components in Designs

As RISC-V continues to democratize chip design, companies must focus on integrating additional circuits or components beyond the core semiconductor chip to achieve differentiation. This approach involves combining RISC-V cores with specialized hardware modules, accelerators, or custom peripherals, which can enhance functionality, performance, and application-specific capabilities. By patenting these integrated designs, companies can protect innovations that deliver distinct advantages in areas like AI processing, IoT connectivity, and advanced signal processing. This strategy elevates product value and provides a competitive edge over standard RISC-V implementations.

Additional Strategies

Defensive Portfolios Beyond Core IP

With the increased likelihood of cross-industry litigation, especially as semiconductor companies collaborate with clients in various sectors, having a defensive patent portfolio that extends beyond core technologies is crucial. This means companies should not only protect their fundamental chip designs but also patent-related components, software integrations, and application-specific innovations that support the broader ecosystem. A comprehensive defensive portfolio offers leverage in negotiations, mitigates infringement risks across industries, and reduces costly legal battles. It also provides flexibility in pursuing cross-licensing agreements, which can facilitate collaboration and market entry across different sectors.

Anticipating Litigation Trends

As semiconductor technologies become increasingly embedded across diverse sectors such as automotive, healthcare, and consumer electronics, the industry may face more cross-industry patent disputes, similar to those seen in telecommunications. This convergence can lead to unexpected legal conflicts, particularly as companies from traditionally distinct fields compete over overlapping innovations. To mitigate these risks, companies must proactively secure patents in application-specific areas, not only to protect their innovations but also to build leverage in potential legal negotiations.

Participation in Patent Alliances

Engaging in collaborative patent pools allows companies to share intellectual property (IP) resources and minimize infringement risks, creating a more open and cooperative innovation environment. By pooling patents, companies can gain access to a broader array of technologies, accelerate development timelines, and reduce legal costs associated with patent disputes. This approach is especially valuable for fostering standardized innovations, as seen with China’s RISC-V patent alliance, where members agree to share IP and avoid litigation, promoting faster semiconductor development. Participating in such alliances strengthens collaborative efforts and enhances market adoption of open-source technologies. Such a position offers companies a strategic advantage in scaling innovations while reducing IP-related conflicts.^{2, 3}

Conclusion

The open-source ISA revolution, led by RISC-V, is reshaping the semiconductor industry’s patent landscape. While certain patent types are losing relevance, opportunities abound for companies that focus on manufacturing processes, specialized applications, and defensive patenting strategies. The blurring lines between foundries and design houses, along with increased patent activity from pure-play foundries, underscore the need for a proactive and adaptive approach to IP protection. By evolving their patent strategies, companies can protect their investments and contribute to a more collaborative and innovative industry.

References

Note: This article is intended for informational purposes and reflects the state of the industry as of October 2024.

Footnotes

1. Thales Group. “How European Collaboration is Driving Open-Source Innovation.” Thales Group, October 5, 2023. Link. ↩
2. Zhang, Lilian. “China’s Top Chip Designers Form RISC-V Patent Alliance to Promote Semiconductor Self-Sufficiency.” South China Morning Post, August 29, 2023. Link. ↩ ↩²
3. The Register. “China RISC-V Patent Alliance to Promote Semiconductor Self-Sufficiency.” The Register, August 31, 2023. Link. ↩ ↩²
4. Saligane, Mehdi. “Open-Source Hardware: A Growing Movement to Democratize IC Design.” Michigan Engineering, January 17, 2023. Link. ↩
5. Harrison, Ian. “Impact of Open-Source ISA on the Patent Landscape in the Semiconductor Industry.” Lexology, September 20, 2022. Link. ↩
6. S. Patent and Trademark Office. “Automotive Display Validation Technique.” US Patent No. 11,284,062 B2, issued March 22, 2022. Link. ↩Top of Form
7. EIP Insights. “Changes in the Semiconductor Industry: How Patent Strategies Need to Adapt.” EIP, Link
8. IAM Media. “Patent Analysis Reveals High-Performance Computing Semiconductors Behind AI Boom.” IAM, October 11, 2023. Link