MCU revitalizing SDVs with diverse compute, virtual prototyping

A new automotive microcontroller incorporates physical AI traits while boosting compute and memory content to support zonal architecture in software-defined vehicles (SDVs). It also introduces a digital twin of the target hardware, letting software engineers write, run, and debug unmodified production software long before chips or evaluation boards exist.

Infineon’s AURIX RC1 microcontroller, unveiled at electronica 2026 in Munich, Germany, aims to redefine real-time compute and control for SDVs and extend it to physical AI. It aims to do so by leveraging ample compute content and the modular nature of the open RISC-V architecture.

Figure 1 The AURIX RC1 microcontroller aims to redefine real-time compute and control for SDVs and to extend this to physical AI applications. Source: Infineon

These high-end MCUs aim to simplify SDV development with a single, scalable device that supports multiple automotive domains, rather than point solutions. These MCUs also offer a robust software ecosystem designed to reduce migration effort and accelerate software development for engineering teams.

Let’s first see how these automotive MCUs revisit the long-held promise of SDVs.

Another stab at SDVs?

First and foremost, AURIX RC1, the company’s first RISC-V-based MCU, aims to support functions and software that have been distributed across many electronic control units (ECUs) in the car. In SDVs, they are increasingly integrated into central car computers and zone controllers.

Figure 2 SDVs will drive massive changes in vehicle architecture, with MCUs at the heart of this tectonic design shift. Source: Infineon

AURIX RC1 enables scalable cross-domain computing by supporting applications ranging from zone, body, and chassis control to battery management systems (BMS) and powertrains, as well as cockpit and safety management for driver assistance. Here, RISC-V helps optimize specific AURIX RC1 lineups for individual applications.

For this broad range of applications, AURIX RC1 integrates up to 12 32-bit processing cores, an advanced parallel processing unit for edge AI, and up to 40 megabytes of embedded memory. This caters to higher computing demand as well as functional safety, future-proof cybersecurity, and high-speed in-vehicle networking, which are foundational requirements in SDVs.

In addition to complying with global regulations such as ISO/SAE 21434 and the Cyber Resilience Act, the MCU provides hardware mechanisms for physical protection and crypto agility. Next, to move data efficiently across the vehicle, it supports connectivity technologies such as CAN-XL, 10BASE-T1S, and multi-Gigabit Ethernet.

Software ecosystem ready from day one

As automotive design complexity increases with the emergence of SDVs, OEMs and Tier 1s need to start software development long before hardware is delivered. To support this, Infineon claims to provide a software ecosystem around AURIX RC1 microcontrollers, DRIVECORE, that combines Infineon’s toolsets with pre-integrated software bundles from ecosystem partners.

DRIVECORE provides support for AUTOSAR, open-source software, functional safety, and cybersecurity. It also supports virtual prototyping with the Synopsys Virtualizer Development Kit (VDK), allowing design engineers to start software development and validation before hardware is available. TASKING also supports the entire development lifecycle for AURIX RC1 microcontrollers, helping OEMs and Tier-1s starting new designs or migrating from TriCore and Arm.

Figure 3 AURIX RC1 MCUs complement In-house toolchains with pre-integrated software bundles from ecosystem partners. Source: Infineon

Synopsys’ VDK equips automotive design engineers with a virtual prototype of the AURIX RC1 MCU, enabling them to develop, verify, and validate software across a variety of domains. This reduces integration risk and accelerates time to market. It’s a digital twin that shifts more automotive engineering to virtual environments to manage software development and integration complexity, cost, and time-to-market pressures.

“VDK for AURIX RC1 MCUs enables OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers to start software development before silicon is available and scale system validation from virtual ECUs to complete electronics digital twins,” said Marc Serughetti, VP of product management at Synopsys. “These digital twins help teams validate software across the vehicle’s electronics architecture and catch issues early, reducing costs, accelerating time to market, and improving software quality.”

TASKING, a supplier of embedded software development tools, will also let design engineers compile, debug, and verify AURIX RC1-based systems with a unified toolchain that incorporates built-in agentic AI to accelerate development of complex, multicore automotive systems. For instance, compiling, debugging, and verification in one unified development environment will help engineers deliver software that meets ISO 26262 and ISO/SAE 21434 requirements more efficiently.

Infineon targets to provide AURIX RC1 microcontroller samples in the first half of 2027.

Related Content

The post MCU revitalizing SDVs with diverse compute, virtual prototyping appeared first on EDN.

Automotive LED driver advances animated lighting