Since the establishment of AcSiP Technology Corp., its core expertise of outstanding SiP miniature module technology has enabled the company to launch various communication solutions at the smallest size in the industry and continue to expand the adoption of SiP technology, establishing its leading role in the communication semiconductor industry. Keeping up with the booming development of IoT applications, AcSiP offers multiple wireless solutions that can simplify development complexity for clients, from various connectivity solutions to the combination of MCU and sensors. However, to keep ahead in the IoT market, AcSiP knows it must not only continue to strengthen its core technology, but also get ready for the increasingly fierce competition from its global peers.
There are many different divisions of labor in the semiconductor industry. In the complicated industry chain, AcSiP's product development always revolves around the same core idea, which is to offer products with high performance, low cost, and high reliability, hoping to help its clients move towards successful mass production. To achieve this goal, AcSiP not only invests a lot of resources in product R&D, but also actively develops in-depth cooperation with its partners. In the mind of Mr. Hsu, CEO of AcSiP Technology Corp., the design and development of AcSiP's products is not just about stacking chips with different functions, but rather a design process with the same core concept to find the sweet spot between performance and cost under the functional goals to avoid the wasting of resources caused by over-specification.
Hsu said in the interview, "When IC providers launch computing chips, they have already decided the direction of applications; what AcSiP can contribute is to design balanced communication modules based on existing configurations." Focusing on the improvement of product cost-effectiveness has defined the characteristics of AcSiP in the industry. The products launched by AcSiP, though of different specifications, all feature small size and high level of integration. Such features can also help simplify PCB design and reduce introduction/R&D costs for clients, thereby significantly improving the probability of successful R&D and mass production. In addition, AcSiP also attaches great importance to product reliability. IoT application environments are often harsh. Thus, to build a reliable and stable operation infrastructure, service life must be taken into consideration. For this reason, AcSiP has invested considerable resources in hardware R&D. Besides hardware, software platforms are also crucial in the development of IoT technology, and AcSiP understands the appeal of powerful platforms to terminal application developers, so while improving their wireless communication modules, they are also working on the development of software platforms.
Taiwan's small IC manufacturers often have their eye on the mere reduction of mass production costs, and tend to launch products with similar functions as those of large manufacturers. This development model might still command some room for survival in the field of consumer electronics, but is obviously very limited when it comes to IoT applications. "Due to the diverse needs of IoT applications, which often extend down from the POC stage, if we cannot provide convenient development tools, we may not be able to meet customer needs," Hsu said.
It is critical to have great partner support in the semiconductor industry, and AcSiP is fully aware of this; therefore, the company has always maintained a close relationship with partners. Positioned as a bridge between upstream IC manufacturers and downstream terminal applications, AcSiP has developed excellent market savviness and has become a trusted partner of MediaTek, a tech giant in IC design. AcSiP's position in the supply chain allows it to fully reflect market demand in the upstream and provide technical support to terminal manufacturers in the downstream. With such niche, this year it also became one of the partners of the IoT Service Hub to promote the domestic EVB "Genio 130" (formerly known as Filogic 130). Genio 130 is a perfect example of achieving higher energy efficiency with a small size and low power consumption. The optional audio DSP also proves ideal for product developers who are designing voice-enabled IoT devices.
AcSiP has a very positive attitude towards the cooperation with the IoT Service Hub, which is an innovation platform that brings together all stakeholders in the sectors of industry, government, academia, and R&D. Its goal is to promote the development of smart manufacturing and IoT technology in Taiwan. AcSiP believes that its cooperation with the Hub can bolster Taiwan's semiconductor industry chain, as well as accelerate product development and marketing processes. Further cooperative relationships can also be established with upstream and downstream partners in other industry chains along the way.
The IoT Service Hub aims to create innovative industrial-level applications for Taiwan's IC AIoT. By joining hands with original IC manufacturer MediaTek, module manufacturer AcSiP, and related agent Silicon Application Corp., the Hub seeks to assist a new startup, UEC System Solutions Corporation, in its development project of smart socket localization. During the product development process, AcSiP provided professional services and advice to the development team based on its past experience. At the same time, it also invested resources to design customized modules for UEC System Solutions Corporation. In other words, AcSiP did its very best to assist the product's smooth development and its transition to mass production.
"A large number of IoT applications involve image recognition and voice functions... Just imagine in the future, smart homes will no longer need to rely on mobile apps as the intermediary, but will directly control terminal devices via voice control since IoT devices also have their own sensors." What Hsu described above is a more ideal scenario of smart home operation. In the past, the cost and size of devices would be considerable if they had to deploy certain functions. However, after MediaTek came on board, the teams rethought the EVB design concept and abandoned the old assembly-oriented method. With upstream and downstream suppliers integrated to exert a concentric circle effect, the plan became feasible thanks to the joint efforts of all team members. To be more precise, AcSiP collaborated with various teams to deploy Genio 130 and built a hardware architecture specifically designed for smart homes. By doing so, it now plays a key role in promoting the domestic IC smart manufacturing ecosystem on the IoT Service Hub. In the "smart socket" project, Genio 130's DSP features were also leveraged to design a more user-friendly and convenient smart home appliance.
In the face of global competition in the market, AcSiP not only chose to strengthen its own technical capabilities, but has also actively participated in cooperation projects, which in turn helped the company accelerate technology R&D and market promotion, as well as enhance Taiwan's influence in the global market at the same time. Building on its solid technology, AcSiP has redefined the meaning of "miniature" and proves that in the field of technology, "small" can actually be a synonym for "big"!