As the automotive industry evolves from mechanical products to AI-driven intelligent terminals, it is undergoing a profound transformation from “Software-Defined Vehicles (SDV)” to “AI-Defined Vehicles (AIDV)”, which demands higher standards for safety, intelligence, and system responsiveness.
As one of the most vibrant and innovative automotive markets globally, China is not only at the forefront of electrification but also demonstrates strong leadership in the process of intelligence. In response to the urgent demands from local OEMs and chip technology companies for high safety, high intelligence, and rapid product iteration, Arm is collaborating with a wide range of ecosystem partners through an efficient hardware-software computing platform and powerful software empowerment to jointly build a future-oriented intelligent automotive foundation, aiming for a milestone achievement by 2025.
Arm Zena CSS: The World’s First Arm Computing Subsystem for ‘AI-Defined Vehicles’
Transitioning to a computing platform provider, Arm has launched dedicated computing subsystems (Compute Subsystems, CSS) for its primary application markets, with the Arm® Zena™ CSS specifically designed as a pre-integrated, standardized computing platform for “AI-Defined Vehicles”. Based on Armv9 Automotive Enhanced (AE) technology, it integrates Arm Cortex®-A720AE high-performance cores, Cortex-R82AE driven safety islands, runtime security engines, and optional Arm MaliÔ image signal processors, fully supporting a diverse range of AI workloads from L2+ advanced driver assistance systems to L4 level autonomous driving.
As a standardized and pre-integrated computing platform, Arm Zena CSS can shorten chip development cycles by up to 12 months and reduce engineering resource investment for each chip project by as much as 20%, helping automakers and chip suppliers accelerate the market launch of new models. These new models will feature intelligent applications including smart voice, touch interfaces, immersive digital cockpit experiences, driving assistance, autonomous driving, and real-time perception.
Arm Chiplet System Architecture: Establishing Cross-Industry Universal Standards to Accelerate AI Automotive Innovation
As the demand for computing power continues to rise with AI, chiplets have become one of the most promising solutions to address challenges in the automotive industry. By breaking down traditional monolithic system-on-chip (SoC) designs into smaller modular components, chiplets can help OEMs and their partners accelerate innovation, reuse IP, and achieve scalable applications across multiple automotive platforms. However, to unlock the full potential of chiplets in the automotive sector, universal standards are essential, and the entire ecosystem needs to collaboratively establish a framework that enables true interoperability.
To this end, Arm launched the Arm Chiplet System Architecture (CSA) last year, aimed at standardizing industry-wide norms, reducing fragmentation risks, and accelerating the development and deployment of custom chip solutions. Currently, the CSA has received strong support from over 70 partners. Additionally, Zena CSS is built on Arm Neoverse® CMN S3AE automotive mesh network interconnect technology, natively supporting chiplet architecture and easily integrating heterogeneous computing chiplets such as GPUs and AI accelerators through standardized UCIe interfaces, facilitating the creation of customized, adaptable products.
Recently, Arm also announced its contribution of the Foundation Chiplet System Architecture (FCSA) specification to the Open Compute Project (OCP) to further deepen industry collaboration in the chiplet domain and extend Arm’s long-standing principles of open collaboration in data center innovation to the automotive sector. Through this participation, Arm is helping to establish a robust and open chiplet market foundation while supporting partners across the entire automotive value chain, including OEMs, tier-one suppliers, and semiconductor manufacturers, to unleash a new wave of innovation and embrace AI.
SOAFEE Ecosystem Collaboration: Over 150 Global Members in Four Years, Building the Software Foundation for ‘AI-Defined Vehicles’
Just as hardware standardization is crucial, the development of AI-defined vehicles also requires a software architecture driven by standards. As early as 2021, Arm proactively collaborated with ecosystem partners to establish SOAFEE (Scalable Open Architecture for Embedded Edge), aimed at building an open, standardized software infrastructure for the next generation of smart vehicles. This initiative has facilitated the smooth development and deployment of software solutions and software-defined functionalities in vehicles, thereby promoting advancements in hardware technologies, such as chiplet integration. SOAFEE has also enabled the decoupling of vehicle hardware and software, which is vital for fully realizing the potential of chiplet technology in the automotive market, as it enhances flexibility and interoperability between components, reduces development costs, and shortens development cycles.
Today, SOAFEE has celebrated its fourth anniversary, achieving milestone accomplishments: the global membership has surpassed 150, with 38% from the Asia-Pacific region, including outstanding Chinese partners such as AutoCore, Black Sesame Technologies, GAC Group, Geely Automobile, Lenovo Vehicle Computing, and more. With the successful completion of the SOAFEE.next phase, the project has introduced a new generation of development environments and reference implementations, laying the groundwork for the development and deployment of ‘AI-Defined Vehicles’ through multiple blueprint projects. Furthermore, to deepen regional collaboration and accelerate innovation in the field of AI-defined vehicles, SOAFEE has established a special interest group for the Asia-Pacific region in 2024, gathering Asian members to collectively address core challenges both regionally and globally. This center continues to thrive, fostering open collaboration and diverse new perspectives within the SIG.
Currently, nearly 100% of automotive manufacturers globally utilize Arm technology, providing higher performance and better energy efficiency for the latest models through scalable hardware architectures and portable software ecosystems. In the future, Arm will continue to work with the global automotive industry chain, from the Zena CSS hardware platform, Arm Chiplet System Architecture, to the SOAFEE software framework and ecosystem, comprehensively promoting the automotive industry towards a smarter, safer, and more efficient direction.