Listen to this articleAcross the globe, governments are in a race to bring semiconductor manufacturing within their borders. The United States is providing an unprecedented $39 billion in government support to build new semi factories and to expand production.
Why? Because chips are the beating heart of innovation.
If semiconductors have been the heart of innovation, then open source software has been the lifeblood.
The two have interacted well, Linux on x86 machines are the backbone of computing for nearly every industry. Embedded Linux is the de-facto OS.
Now, chips and open source are rapidly converging, creating an even deeper level of integration and innovation, as open hardware grows in popularity and importance. Companies making open source investments are also looking to limit potential hindrances from corporations and patent trolls.
For the last 18 years, Open Invention Network – financially supported by IBM/Red Hat, Google, Philips, NEC, Sony, SUSE and Toyota – has protected corporate investments in open source projects like Linux.
It has done so by creating a “patent no-fly zone” around open source software, thwarting both companies and patent trolls from hindering open source adoption and innovation through patent activities.
Tokyo Electron Device, Ltd. (TED) has joined Open Invention Network as a community member. As the group company of the world’s third-largest semiconductor production equipment manufacturer, and a global provider of customer-optimized solutions, TED is a pioneer in demonstrating its belief that patent non-aggression in open source drives innovation and productivity.
“The semiconductor industry is at the heart of much of the digital transformation occurring across many industry segments. Driving the advancements in integrated circuits are the semiconductor production equipment manufacturers and the trading companies which continuously add value to semiconductors with design functions. Tokyo Electron Device, and its parent Tokyo Electron Limited, are foundational in the storied history of Japan’s semiconductor industry and they continue to be leaders globally,” said Keith Bergelt, CEO of Open Invention Network. “We are pleased that TED has joined our community and committed to patent non-aggression in open source technologies.”
“We are incredibly focused on pleasing our customers. One of the most effective ways to do that is to develop the systems and technologies that enable our customers to innovate. Building and leveraging open technologies enables businesses to more easily integrate their solutions, while empowering them to focus more of their resources in the powerful, distinguishing technologies that customers pursue,” said Kazuki Shinoda, Senior Vice President at Tokyo Electron Device, Ltd. “We are pleased to be part of the OIN community protecting open projects that encourage innovation.”
As the world enters a more expansive phase of open source participation, more than two dozen key chip companies and semiconductor equipment manufacturers have already joined Open Invention Network – including ASML.
