California-based Alif Semiconductor is using Ceva’s wireless technology for its latest wireless microcontrollers for connected IoT platforms.

Ceva is a Maryland-based licensor of silicon and software IP that lets smart edge devices connect, sense and infer data more reliably and efficiently. Alif supplies secure, connected, power efficient artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) enabled microcontrollers (MCUs) and fusion processors.

Alif has licensed and deployed the Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy and 802.15.4 IPs in its Balletto family of wireless MCUs.

The Balletto (alifsemi.com/products/balletto) is a complete edge AI and ML MCU for connected IoT platforms with integrated Bluetooth Low Energy 5.3 and 802.15.4 wireless subsystem and a dedicated network co-processor, enabling connectivity and machine learning in a single chip. The family opens a frontier for battery-powered edge ML applications, delivering up to a fifty-times boost in machine-learning performance and inference efficiency versus traditional MCUs that lack neural co-processors.

The Ceva-Waves Bluetooth Low Energy IP provides Balletto MCUs with the connectivity at low power consumption, and supports Bluetooth LE Audio and Auracast broadcast audio, for those who wish to create differentiated wireless audio products. The family also relies on Ceva-Waves 802.15.4 IP for Thread, Zigbee and Matter support in smart-home applications.

“Our Balletto family of connected, intelligent MCUs are tailored to meet the growing demand for AI-ML workloads in battery-powered devices,” said Mark Rootz, VP of marketing at Alif Semiconductor. “Ceva’s Bluetooth Low Energy and 802.15.4 IPs provide us with highly-proven and robust connectivity for our chip design, allowing us to focus our R&D resources on differentiating our MCU to deliver outstanding performance for the most demanding wireless audio and smart-home AI-ML use cases.”

Tal Shalev, vice president at Ceva, added: “Wireless connectivity is a fundamental requirement of every intelligent device, and we’re proud to be the trusted supplier of embedded wireless IP to industry leaders and innovators alike, including Alif Semiconductor. Our Bluetooth Low Energy IP has powered billions of devices to date, and we’re excited to partner with Alif to enable their Balletto family of intelligent MCUs with robust connectivity and high-bit rate audio.”

The Ceva-Waves Bluetooth IP platforms (www.ceva-ip.com/product/rivierawaves-bluetooth-platforms) are for both Bluetooth LE and Bluetooth dual-mode connectivity, spanning RF, modem, baseband controller, and complete host and profile software stacks. Bluetooth features supported include AoA, AoD, direction finding, LE Audio, Auracast, periodic advertising with response, and channel sounding. It also has an IEEE 802.15.4 addon for Thread, Zigbee and Matter support.

With more than 4.5 billion devices shipped to date and dozens of licensees, the Ceva-Waves Bluetooth IP is widely deployed in consumer, automotive, industrial, medical and IoT devices with many semiconductor companies and OEMs. It can be found in smartphones, tablets, beacons, wireless speakers, wireless headsets and earbuds, hearing aids, and other wearables.

Since 2019, Alif (alifsemi.com) has offered microcontrollers and fusion processors so developers can create broad, scalable and connected AI-enabled embedded applications that are power efficient.

Ceva (www.ceva-ip.com) is based in Rockville, Maryland, with a global customer base supported by operations worldwide.