Beijing pushes AI-assisted chip design as part of self-sufficiency drive
Artificial intelligence agents are increasingly taking the wheel in designing China’s next-generation semiconductors, as Beijing and domestic technology firms accelerate efforts to integrate AI into chip design software to bolster national self-sufficiency. Empyrean Technology, China’s top maker of electronic design automation (EDA) tools, has been accelerating the chip design process by using…
Artificial intelligence (AI) agents are now playing a crucial role in designing China's next-generation semiconductors, as Beijing and domestic technology companies accelerate their efforts to integrate AI into chip design software for enhanced national self-sufficiency. China's leading electronic design automation (EDA) tools manufacturer, Empyrean Technology, is leveraging AI-optimized algorithms and agentic tools to streamline the chip design process.
By incorporating an AI agent into its simulation and layout tools, Empyrean Technology has managed to reduce the time required for circuit layout tasks from four weeks to just one week, according to company chairman Liu Weiping.
The adoption of agentic AI has marked a "paradigm shift" in chip design, transitioning from "humans operating tools" to "humans commanding agents," as stated by Liu at the 2026 International Integrated Circuit Innovation Expo in Shenzhen. This shift will also impact the industry's business model, shifting from the traditional software license model to a new one based on token consumption with agentic EDA tools, as mentioned by Liu.
Empyrean is developing an agentic EDA platform, which it considers a crucial component of its future strategy. This platform would enable Empyrean's own agentic tools to collaborate with those of its partners, as per Liu. The development of domestic alternatives for EDA software is a top priority for Beijing due to the global EDA market being dominated by Western players such as Synopsys, Cadence Design Systems, and Siemens EDA.
The Chinese government, through the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), is also seeking to capitalize on AI to expedite its self-sufficiency drive in core technologies, including semiconductors. In a recent action plan published on Friday, MIIT emphasized the need for deeper integration between AI and software, including industrial software like EDA and computer-aided design tools, with the aim of advancing up to "the high end of the global value chain by 2030."
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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