Texas Instruments Opens Silicon Valley Lab - Disruptive Innovation

On March 13, 2012, Texas Instruments announced the establishment of a new laboratory in Silicon Valley, focusing on analog and mixed-signal innovations. This is the second forward-looking innovation created by Texas Instruments following the Kilby Laboratories. The main R & D center. The EETimes editor visited the lab and discussed in depth with the head of Analog Products, Texas Instruments. The following is the compilation of EEWORLD:

When it comes to the newly established Silicon Valley Lab, Texas Instruments executives clearly conveyed a message that true innovation is the core of which is always a disruptive force. TI shoulders the burden of creating and leading this power. mission.

This seems very interesting, because TI has always been shown by conservatives. But as long as we look at TI's growth trajectory for almost 50 years, we can see where its innovation lies. It is not enough for innovation to rely on its own strength. It needs to communicate with universities, colleges, institutions and organizations at the same time. Silicon Valley is a breeding ground for innovation. Indeed, Silicon Valley is the birthplace of many cutting-edge high technologies today, and TI hopes to bring a more holistic, systematic approach to research and development to the platform in its usual calm and steady manner.

Greg Lowe, TI's vice president of analog products, said: "Our goal is simple." He said, first of all, the company hopes to expand its business. In addition to this, in today's fast-paced, innovative environment, how to make a difference is becoming a top priority. "We must work hard on our research objects and methods."

Last year, part of TI’s achievements were attributed to the acquisition of National Semiconductor, which provided a more powerful platform for the company’s engineers who are eager to innovate in simulation. In addition, under the conditions that today's hardware design gradually loses its charm and the software business is booming, TI also strengthens cooperation and exchanges with local colleges and universities, and builds a well-founded simulation platform for more engineering students to stimulate their hardware. The passion for design.

Now, even many elderly people in ancient China are using the iPhone skillfully. People are not afraid of emerging technologies. Because of this, TI has increased the confidence and motivation of disruptive innovation. Ahmad Baha, TI's analog products division’s CTO, said: “I believe that now is the most exciting moment in the electronics business. We will be more committed to playing an important and innovative role in Silicon Valley.”

TI needs disruptive innovation to lead the tide of innovation. Otherwise, it will struggle, especially in the semiconductor and hardware fields. Hardware has not yet attracted top talent, the return on investment is only 1.2, and the return on investment in software is 4.7. The increasing flow of talent to software and applications has made TI realize that innovation cannot be limited to chasing Moore's Law, but it must go beyond pursuing new inspirations that can impact the market.

However, innovation does not mean that inspiration is not that today's engineers do not have good inspiration. Because there is no R & D laboratory with a large R & D funding like Bell Labs, many inspirations are smashed in the cradle.

"The difference between invention and innovation is that innovation is about making money with new inspiration." Bahai suggested that those uninspired engineers turn to play games. He half-jokingly said: "The game is an area where it's easy to experiment with technological innovation because If anything goes wrong, you can blame children."

In order to ensure the cutting-edge and competitive nature of Silicon Valley, hardware engineers need to keep their minds active and advanced in design at all times. TI's internships last year accounted for 60%. This year, TI promised to further expand its internship program as an important component of Silicon Valley innovation.

In more than 80 years of TI's history, innovation has always run through the entire history of TI's technology. Today, TI is advancing technology development and product innovation in areas such as ultra-low-power processing and signal conditioning, energy management, cloud computing, security and security, and medical care. TI is always committed to working closely with customers, industry alliances and universities to continuously develop differentiated products, improve our work, life and entertainment, and meet current and future needs.