With the coming Internet of Things (IoT) era, a large number of devices will be connected to the Internet. While this trend brings convenience, it also brings an increased risk of equipment being hacked and chips being illegally copied. Faced with such threats to information security, the Taiwanese start-up Jmem Technology (Jmem Tek) has developed various products, such as MSOTP and PUF, that can help companies raise their storage density, prevent physical attacks, and generate random data for higher unpredictability, to meet the market's high demand for security.John Chang, CEO of Jmem Tek, pointed out that there are several pain points in information security for chips. First, most memory chips are very similar in their structure, while the main difference is the firmware. This similarity makes it easier for hackers to crack. Second, a large amount of firmware is stored in OTP (one-time programmable) memory. Protecting firmware has thus become the current key to information security. Third, chips are exposed to the risk of reverse engineering. Hackers can easily obtain chip data by removing the coating or using physical methods such as X-ray. Jmem Tek's technology can solve those pain points.Jmem Tek was co-founded by four graduates of the College of Electrical and Computer Engineering of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University—John Chang, Paul Lo, Johnny Lu, and Jerry Chang, with their product concepts originating from John Chang's doctoral thesis. The company currently houses a team of about 15, whose member's backgrounds include electronic engineering and other professional fields. John pointed out that, in its early days, the Jmem Tek team actively participated in competitions to promote its innovative concepts and technological achievements. And it did quite well—for example, this year (2023), it was invited to participate in the City-Tech.Tokyo event for startups, the world's largest urban technology exhibition, hosted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. In September, it was selected as second place in the TW-SG Startup Exchange Program and was invited to the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH). Then, in November, it was selected into the TINVA TOP 10 Startup by the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) New Venture Association (TINVA), showing the company's potential for development.John then introduced Jmem Tek's major technologies. Its patented MSOTP is a major innovation in the field of anti-fuse OTP memory. Each device unit in MSOTP can store two bits of data. That means fewer transistors can store the same amount of data as in traditional methods. In addition, the structure Jmem Tek designed makes it difficult for physical attacks such as X-ray and decapping to attain the storage status of the MSOTP. Since it is also highly compatible with the CMOS logic process, the technology requires no additional photomask during the manufacturing process, meaning production costs can be reduced.MSOTP's low power consumption and small surface area are particularly suitable for IoT, where space is limited and devices are distributed. Applications for MSOTP include secure data storage, key storage, sensor fine-tuning, parameter setting, function selection, etc. In addition, users can also integrate MSOTP and traditional OTP to avoid brute force cracking and meet higher security level storage requirements.In addition to MSOTP, Jmem Technology's patented technology also includes hardware security technology PUF. PUF is a hardware security technology derived from non-uniformity in the wafer manufacturing process. The unique "uniqueness" and "unpredictability" of PUF can generate random sequences in the trust system, effectively reducing the risk of being cracked by the algorithm. Jmem Technology's patented PUF technology relies on its innovative structure to reduce chip area and improve performance, making it highly competitive in the market.The technologies of MSOTP and PUF make the chip almost impossible to crack by reverse engineering, greatly improving the security strength. The company's current business model is to provide design services to IC manufacturers, John pointed out. This technology is particularly suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises or start-up teams that cannot easily obtain relevant resources from large IC design manufacturers. Jmem Tek can assist customers with limited scale to quickly meet the security needs of the market.Regarding future development, John said that Jmem Tek will focus on the two major areas of the Internet of Things and vehicle-mounted systems, as well as AIoT protection algorithms and solutions that combine the algorithms on the device side to avoid algorithm theft. There are a large number of edge devices in the Internet of Things, and the functions of chips are single and there are many cost considerations. The company's solutions help manufacturers in this field create economical and simple systems. The automotive market has taken off rapidly in recent years, and industry players and consumers have become increasingly aware of system security. Jmem Technology's patented technology meets these needs. Since the automotive field requires long-term certification, the initial focus will be on the Internet of Things. The automotive market development strategy is to first establish cooperative relationships with industrial supply chain manufacturers and enter the market step by step.It has been about a year and a half since its establishment in April 2022. John's feelings about Taiwan's new innovation environment are quite positive. He pointed out that Taiwan currently has a vibrant atmosphere for innovation, with policies, regulations, and various plans becoming more and more complete, such as the startup cluster planned by TTA and InnoVEX, the startup exhibition area that helped participate in COMPUTEX. For start-up teams with limited resources, it will bring huge help in technology exposure and fundraising. In addition, he also hopes that there will be more resources and policies focusing on early-stage start-ups in the future. It allows teams with the potential to accelerate their maturity and create a win-win vision of co-prosperity for both the enterprise and the country's economic development.Jmem Tek team membersPhoto: Company

Enterprise operations are facing increasing challenges due to intense competition in global industries. Repetitive tasks with heavy workloads, high risks caused by human operations, inefficient resource utilization, heavy pressure during business peaks, and increasingly complex cross-platform system operations—these factors not only consume a significant amount of time and energy but also hinder enterprise innovation. Now, many enterprises have introduced robotic process automation (RPA) to address the aforementioned pain points. The new generation of EMILY.RPA, launched by the startup team BILINK CORP., features a unique built-in web browser that not only boosts work efficiency but is also outstanding in terms of safety, usability, reliability, and integration. Currently, it has been adopted by several large domestic and foreign enterprises.Jerry Tseng, founder of BILINK CORP., pointed out that digital transformation has taken the world by storm, and enterprises have become more reliant on IT systems. In recent years, most enterprises have started to migrate documents and applications to cloud platforms. Cloud platforms can save enterprises the cost of building IT infrastructure and come with the advantage of immediate access via online login, thereby increasing operational efficiency. Under this trend, the role of PCs at work has gradually shifted from merely operation platforms to serving as the portal for web browsers to log into cloud platforms. However, there are information security concerns regarding RPA solutions from various brands that utilize users' web browsers to log into cloud platforms or search for information on web pages. EMILY.RPA has addressed these issues through its unique design.EMILY.RPA has four main features. Firstly, it can utilize RPA technologies to imitate ways in which humans operate computer software to achieve process automation. Additionally, it can directly interact with various types of software and cloud applications, eliminating the need for communication with software developers to perform custom modifications when implementing automated tasks. Secondly, the low-code and no-code scripting functions are designed through the combination of EMILY.RPA and machine learning algorithms. Low-code is a traditional programming method that allows professional programmers to easily adjust processes to fit their needs through minor modifications in coding. No-code, on the other hand, enables non-professional programmers to easily and quickly train and utilize EMILY.RPA through icons on the visual programming interface. It can automatically complete searches for market information and organize such data into specific formats that meet enterprises' requirements, among other tasks.The third feature is, unlike other RPA tools that require operation via the user's personal web browsers and the installation of extension components, EMILY.RPA utilizes dedicated web browsers to conduct operations, further protecting enterprises' information security. Currently, this technology has obtained Taiwan patents, and U.S. patents are under review. The fourth feature is that EMILY.RPA supports Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms. Its range of applications can be expanded, enabling different system users to utilize this tool with high efficiency and strengthening the implementation of teamwork and communication. It simultaneously increases the flexibility of enterprise operations and ensures all internal users can receive the same user experience and technical support.The aforementioned features provide strong competitive advantages for EMILY.RPA. Currently, various types of enterprises have deployed it in their organization. Global panel manufacturer Innolux has boosted its work efficiency through the platform and resolved issues that could easily go wrong when handling repetitive tasks manually. In recent years, Innolux has actively promoted smart operations, with the aim of applying RPA in each department of the enterprise to improve their efficiency. Once EMILY.RPA is deployed, it can successfully resolve several long-standing issues. For instance, EMILY.RPA can precisely and efficiently collect price information from retail websites across the world, handle orders with diverse, complex content and special formats from international clients, and automatically complete tables required by companies. Aside from Innolux, logistics companies that need to handle a significant amount of receipts and order tracking information, as well as electronic commerce platforms that need to launch a significant amount of products and have the demand for purchase, sales, and inventory management, have deployed EMILY.RPA. Jerry Tseng emphasized the architecture of EMILY.RPA is highly flexible, and it adopts a subscription model. Whether large companies or small and medium-sized enterprises with limited resources, all can easily increase their efficiency and reduce human operational errors through this platform.Going forward, Jerry Tseng stated that digital transformation has become an inevitable trend. Optimizing work processes through digital transformation has become a necessary strategy for enterprises to increase their competitiveness, and the need for RPA functions from markets will also grow. The new generation of RPA must allow for easy and quick use in complicated scenarios. Thus, EMILY.RPA will leverage generative AI by training large language models (LLM) to enable RPA to swiftly understand users' needs through natural language and directly let robots complete tasks automatically.BILINK CORP. has been established for three years now, and the company has gained the trust of enterprises from different fields. Besides the hard work of its team, Jerry Tseng believes that policy support from the government is also one of the key reasons why the company has achieved outstanding performance. He pointed out that in recent years, the government has been actively improving the domestic start-up ecosystem, optimizing related regulations, and providing support. For instance, the Company Act, which was amended in 2018, allows the shareholding structure of start-up teams to be more flexible, thereby creating more sources of funding. Furthermore, the Taiwan Tech Arena (TTA) offers opportunities to participate in international exhibitions. Its aim is to increase companies' product visibility and make it easier for them to meet clients from overseas markets. BILINK CORP. appreciates the support from the government and TTA. The company will continue to strengthen the efficiency of its products in the future. Additionally, it aims to assist enterprises in various fields in implementing digital transformation through features such as high efficiency, safety, and usability.Three main features of automation technology from EMILY.RPA patented web browserPhoto: BILINK

iCometrue received enthusiastic responses following its show at SEMICON TAIWAN 2023. Some companies have expressed great interest in iCometrue's Logic Drive and Field Programmable Multi-Chip Package (FPMCP) and approached iCometrue for further discussion.iCometrue is making every effort to bring Logic Drive to reality. As the costly non-recurring engineering (NRE) and time-consuming process put up a high barrier preventing IC designers' access to sub-10-nm fabrication technologies, iCometrue proposed the concept of Logic Drive in 2016, to create a Public Innovation Platform that enables 99% of the common public to participate in cutting-edge technology available to the wealthy 1%.Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) chips manufactured on sub-10-nm nodes are suitable for realizing Logic Drive. With 10 nm and more advanced processes, tens of billions of transistors and more than 15 metal layers can be placed on a silicon chip, and the power supply voltage can be scaled down to 0.7V. By packaging one or more standard commodity FPGA chiplets using advanced packaging technology, such as TSMC's CoWoS or InFO or Intel's EMIB, and pairing it with a non-volatile memory (NVM) chip (for example, a flash memory chip) to store the FPGA configuration data, the Logic Drive is made into a non-volatile field-programmable standard commodity, which can be mass commercialized as an ASIC chip after configuration.Whether iCometrue's Logic Drive will become a reality hinges on FPGA standardization. If FPGA becomes a standard commodity like DRAM, the cost will significantly decline. For FPGA standardization, iCometrue proposes retaining the programmable circuits of the FPGA while removing the I/O circuits and control circuits to form new chips, namely, an I/O chip and a control chip, which are also packaged in the same Logic Drive. This way, most of the area of the FPGA chip is used for the arrays of logic cells (logic block array), similar to the layout of DRAM cell arrays (memory block array). Standard specifications should be established for the FPGA chip size, the circuits, and quantity of logic cells, as well as the I/O layout, quantity, electrical properties, and functions (including driving capability and impedance as well as inter-chip communication). iCometrue chairman Dr. M. S. Lin urges that it's time to standardize FPGA!With FPGA standardization, most of the area of the FPGA chip is used for the arrays of logic cells (logic block array), similar to the layout of DRAM cell arrays (memory block array).Photo: iCometrueiCometrue is also cooperating with partners to develop FPMCP, wherein an FPGA chip and NVM chip are added to a multi-chip package (MCP) comprising CPU, GPU, ASIC, and/or SOC. Through configuring or re-configuring the FPGA chip, the MCP becomes field-programmable, and with the NVM chip to store the FPGA configuration data, the FPMCP becomes non-volatile and field-programmable.iCometrue is working on an FPGA/NVM package unit that packages an FPGA chip together with an NVM chip for use in a customer's MCP. It is also seeking partners interested in applying the FPGA/NVM package unit to practical applications.Through configuring or re-configuring the FPGA chip, the MCP becomes an FPMCP and with the NVM chip to store the FPGA configuration data, the FPMCP becomes non-volatile field-programmable.Photo: iCometrueLast but not least, also in the spotlight at SEMICON TAIWAN was Dr. Lin's book, Moore's Journey –The Magical Power of Big Numbers. Giving an in-depth look into the past and present of semiconductors and Moore's Law, the much-raved-about book has inspired and benefited a great many readers.

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a common physiological monitoring device used in medicine. However, conventional ECGs must be operated by medical professionals and are monotonous and time-consuming to use. The PCA 500 developed by QT Medical, a company based in the United States, is a medical-grade 12-lead ECG system that is easy to use and can be operated by a layperson following simple instructions. The entire process takes no more than a minute. The recorded data is sent to the backend via a mobile device and is available to the physician in the cloud for case management and telemonitoring. In terms of accuracy, the device has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and clinical trials have proven that its performance is on par with high-end resting ECGs in terms of accuracy.Jackal Chen, senior vice president of QT Medical, pointed out that cardiovascular diseases pose a major threat to human health, with a mortality rate even higher than that of cancer. Fast and affordable, 12-lead ECGs have long been used for preliminary diagnosis and disease classification. According to the medical guidelines set forth by the American Heart Association (AHA), the performance of a 12-lead ECG is recommended when an individual experiences chest pain or tightness. Although these common symptoms may seem harmless, they are often the sign of heart disease. A 12-lead ECG provides an initial screening of heart conditions and helps the physician make a diagnosis.However, as the 12-lead ECG machines are located in hospitals and an ECG screening is usually only part of a complete medical examination, the test must be performed in a hospital. This time-consuming and inconvenient medical procedure often discourages people from being examined and reduces the chances of patients receiving the necessary treatment. In response to this issue, the PCA 500, a medical-grade 12-lead ECG system from QT Medical, was developed specifically to address this problem. According to Jackal Chen, QT Medical's team is committed to making 12-lead ECG devices and services more accessible and user-friendly in small- and medium-sized clinics, community centers, private homes, and even public places. The company wants its product placed similarly to automated external defibrillators (AEDs) commonly found on the street to enable the rapid proliferation of hospital-grade ECG services.The PCA 500, a medical-grade 12-lead ECG system from QT Medical, stands out for its simplicity. The device consists of a patented one-piece electrode sensor and an ECG recorder, coupled with a mobile app and a cloud-based platform. Users only need to follow the visual instructions and attach the patented ECG electrode sensor to their body. The device then automatically measures the data and it wirelessly to the cloud platform via the app. Finally, the data and preliminary interpretation reports are received by the physician for evaluation.On the whole, the medical-grade 12-lead ECG devices from QT Medical are handy, hygienic, efficient, accurate, and of high quality. The intuitive design of the system makes it easy for an average person or patient to use it comfortably and without special training, while achieving the same accuracy as a standard hospital ECG machine. The compact design and patented one-piece disposable strips effectively reduce the risk of disease transmission through direct contact and avoid the risk of misalignment and misdiagnosis associated with the complicated lead wire placement of traditional ECG devices. This ensures convenience and data accuracy, as well as drastically minimizes the time required for the procedure. All ECG data is encrypted and transmitted securely to the HIPAA- and GDPR-compliant cloud-based management system, which enables real-time case management and provides reports in PDF format for easy aggregation and analysis.Jackal Chen further explained that the development of the product is technically difficult, as the shape of the strips, their position, and the software design need to be fine-tuned in a series of clinical trials to obtain accurate data swiftly. In addition, once completed, the product must undergo rigorous testing and certification to prove its safety and efficacy. Currently, the PCA 500 medical-grade 12-lead ECG system is being used in clinical trials in a variety of different settings and applications. In addition, QT Medical has developed various business models to accommodate the laws and cultures of different countries. In the vast United States, for example, the company works with health facilities to deliver the devices and test strips to patients by mail. Patients operate the device themselves and the data is automatically sent to the cloud-based platform for physicians to analyze. The company is also working with prison authorities in the United States, where the devices are operated by prison staff to address the shortage of medical staff in prisons. As for the Taiwanese market, the device is not only used in hospitals but also in ambulances and telemedicine. Patients can test themselves at home or in a community center and enjoy the benefits of telemedicine and mobile healthcare within the established healthcare system.Since its market launch, the PCA 500 medical-grade 12-lead ECG system has garnered praise in the healthcare industry. In addition to being innovative and practical, solving many of today's medical challenges, Jackal Chen believes that the startup ecosystem in Taiwan and the support from relevant institutions have also contributed greatly to the company's successful growth.Jackal Chen pointed out that the Taiwan branch of QT Medical was established in 2015. Over the past 8 years, an increasingly dynamic startup ecosystem has developed in Taiwan. The policy resources of government agencies and the expertise of business accelerators have also grown rapidly. These resources and policies have been extremely helpful for startups to gain access to the market. The Taiwan Tech Arena, for example, has brought several startups to visit Japanese business leaders and medical institutions. Institutional support has improved the startup teams' standing in dialogue with the other side, allowing for more comprehensive and smoother communication. As a result, new communication channels have been created, opening up the local market.Going forward, QT Medical aims to optimize its products further and expedite product marketing efforts. In the near future, the company will focus on the markets of developed countries and actively collaborate with various agencies to expand the application potential of its products, realizing the vision of mobile healthcare and telemedicine.QT Medical’s PCA 500 is the world’s most portable medical-grade 12-lead ECG system. The patented ECG electrode strips are FDA-approved and can be handled by non-professionals, opening new possibilities for telemedicine applications and cardiac screening.Photo: QT Medical

Rugged embedded computer brand – Cincoze is actively responding to the innovation and diversification of industrial applications caused by the rapid development of AI technology and sees performance increases as the key to supporting this trend. In 2023, Cincoze launched a series of Intel Alder Lake-based industrial computers, including compact models and highly scalable models, embedded computers, and panel PCs, all designed with product features explicitly selected to meet the needs of AI edge computing. In 2024, Cincoze will continue to launch more high-performance industrial computers and GPU computers equipped with Alder Lake CPUs, providing customers with industrial computer options for various industrial applications.Compact and Feature-rich Railway Computer – DX-1200The DX-1200 is equipped with Intel's 12th generation Alder Lake-S processor and supports up to DDR5 64GB 4800 MHz memory with ECC. The compact size DX-1200 features rich I/O with high-speed I/O of up to 4x USB3.2 Gen2x1 and 4x 10 GbE LAN or 12x 1 GbE LAN. Cincoze's exclusive modular expansion allows for the addition of PoE or IGN functions. The DX-1200 is also equipped with an M.2 Key E slot and a Mini PCIe slot, which can support wireless transmission methods such as WiFi, 4G, and Bluetooth. Safety-wise, the DX-1200 maintains Cincoze's wide temperature, wide voltage, overvoltage, overcurrent, and ESD protection. It also complies with the US military shock standard MIL-STD-810G and UL / cUL / EN / IEC / CB 62368-1 safety certification to ensure stability and safety in harsh environments. As a railway computing designated model, the DX-1200 has also passed the EN 50121-3-2 EMC and EN 45545-2 fire protection standards in EN 50155 for railway computing applications.Ultimate Performance and PCIe Expansion for Smart Manufacturing – DS-1400 SeriesThe DS-1400 series is equipped with Intel's 12th generation Alder Lake-S processor with 16 cores (8P + 8E) and supports up to DDR5 64GB 4800MHz of memory with ECC. The DS-1401 and DS-1402 have one and two PCI/PCIe expansion slots, respectively, supporting an expansion card with a maximum power of 110W and a size of 111mm x 235mm. Through Cincoze's exclusive patented PCIe card fixing bracket (Patent No. I773359), the expansion card can be securely locked in place so it will not come loose, even when operating in an environment that requires continuous vibration. The DS-1400 series also inherits Cincoze's rugged features, such as wide temperature (-40 to 70°C), wide voltage, overvoltage, overcurrent, and ESD protection. The DS-1400 complies with the US military shock standard MIL-STD-810G and UL / cUL / EN / IEC / CB 62368-1 safety certification, making it the preferred model for edge computing in smart manufacturing.Slim Body Design as Standalone or Panel PC – P2202 SeriesThe P2202 series includes the slim body P2202 and the PCIe expansion capable P2202E, both are equipped with an Intel Alder Lake-P (U-Series) i3/i5 processor and up to 64GB of DDR5 4800 MHz memory. The biggest highlight of the P2202 series is that they can be used as standalone embedded computers or, through Cincoze's CDS technology, be converted to panel PCs. Cincoze's exclusive CDS patented technology (Convertible Display System, Patent No. M482908) enables the addition of a convertible display module (multiple models available) to make a panel PC suitable for various application environments, such as an industrial panel PC (CV/P2202) for general industrial environments, a high brightness sunlight-readable panel PC (CS/P2202) for outdoor use, or an open frame panel PC (CO/P2202) that integrates perfectly in machine equipment. The P2202 series computers are often used in control cabinets, so they have undergone a variety of vibration and shock reliability tests, such as sine vibration (1G), random vibration (5G), and shock resistance (50G). They have also passed industrial EMC tests (EN 61000-6-2 and EN 61000-6-4).

iCatch Technology, an international leading IC design company focusing on intelligent image processing SoC development for automotive applications, in order to ensure the cybersecurity of its SoC chip design, has recently obtained the ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity design flow certification and has been awarded a certificate. This standard can ensure the cybersecurity of automotive electronic products when connected to internet applications and prevent the potential risks of cyberattack and data breach or leakage. After obtaining ISO 26262 automotive functional safety ASIL-D design flow certification, iCatch Technology further obtained ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity design flow certification. This enables iCatch Technology to provide global automotive customers with functional safety and cybersecurity combined solutions for intelligent image processing SoC products and to fulfill the application requirements of automotive OEM and Tier-1 customers.iCatch Technology recently passed the ISO/SAE 21434 standard design flow certification. The certificate was awarded from Mr. Jack Yeh, GM of Taiwan, TUV NORD (left) to Mr. Weber Hsu, GM of iCatch Technology (right) on Nov. 13, 2023Weber Hsu, GM of iCatch Technology said: "Automotive cybersecurity and data protection in vehicles is an urgent issue. To keep up with the pace of global automotive customers and make products comply with the requirements of international vehicle network security regulations, iCatch Technology invested a lot in the ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity design process modification and training while ISO 26262 functional safety certification training is also undergoing at the same time. This enables iCatch Technology to obtain the ISO/SAE 21434 standard certification just a few months behind the ASIL-D certification of ISO 26262. As a result, we can protect the software and data security of our intelligent image processing SoC platform in the future, prevent information leakage and breach, and build smart imaging application solutions that comply with international vehicle cybersecurity management regulations."The ISO/SAE 21434 vehicle cybersecurity standard is jointly developed and approved by the International Standard Organization (ISO) and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) for the networking security and protection of automotive electronic systems. This is related to the establishment of vehicle cybersecurity management requested by the European Union. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) has proposed at the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations in April 2021 that when a new vehicle is launched for type approval, it needs to pass the certification of the "cybersecurity management system" and compliance with the R155 cybersecurity and R156 software updates for the vehicle. Adopting products developed by an ISO/SAE 21434 standard-certified vendor can ensure the technical solutions when applied to the vehicle is able to comply with vehicle cybersecurity management regulations.Following the ISO/SAE 21434 standard and based on the AEC-Q100 automotive quality qualification and Arm PSA platform security architecture of current intelligent imaging SoC products, iCatch Technology will develop a new hardware and software integrated solution with network data transmission protection and cybersecurity management capability. This can be further customized according to the customer's requirements and combined into the automotive smart image processing SoC application solutions. It can then help the OEM and Tier-1 customers to pass the cybersecurity regulation certification. In the future, iCatch Technology will also cooperate with the IATF 16949 automotive quality management system certified foundries and package and testing partners to develop and manufacture automotive smart image processing SoC products that support both ISO/SAE 21434 cybersecurity and ISO 26262 functional safety standardsWith the increasing degree of electronics and networking in vehicles, the risks of automotive cybersecurity are also increasing. While the users enjoy the convenience of network connection inside a vehicle, the protection of in-vehicle data security to prevent or manage potential risks has become a key issue that all in-vehicle electronic system solutions must face. By passing the ISO/SAE 21434 design process certification, iCatch Technology not only establishes the design and verification capability of cybersecurity management on the automotive chip platform but also builds an intelligent image processing SoC application solution that complies with vehicle data protection and cybersecurity management. This can meet the demands of automotive OEM and Tier-1 customers in cybersecurity and further comply with international vehicle data security management regulations.

Launched in late 2022, ChatGPT showed the world the almighty power of generative AI, thus paving the way for the AI 2.0 revolution. At the heart of generative AI is so-called the large language model (LLM), which is trained on large amounts of data. ChatGPT, for example, is based on either GPT-3 with 175 billion parameters, or GPT-3.5 with 200 billion parameters. Currently, apart from Open AI, Taiwan Web Service's (TWS) Formosa Foundation Model (FFM), and other paid LLMs offered by domestic and foreign companies, there are many more open-source LLMs on the market, such as Hugging Face's BLOOM and Meta's Llama 2. These LLMs are equipped with 7 to 176 billion parameters and can be used legally in commercial environments.Both commercially licensed and free open-source LLMs, once trained on proprietary data, can be utilized by companies in a variety of ways. For example, LLMs can be used for intelligent customer service, code writing, or improvement of efficiency of corporate information utilization. Such applications have significant potential to increase business productivity and industrial competitiveness. Therefore, numerous providers on the market have claimed to help with the implementation of generative AI. However, only a few companies have invested in such projects, while most are adopting a wait-and-see attitude.Leo Yang, Chief Marketing Officer of DeepMentor, pointed out that despite the strong demand for generative AI and the urgent need for its early adoption to improve industry competitiveness, companies are still hesitant for three main reasons, i.e., confidentiality and security considerations, high implementation costs, and lack of AI talents. Even if companies are interested in moving forward with generative AI projects, most do not know where to start, as there is a frenzied scramble for AI talent worldwide. In addition, most vendors offer generative AI services on cloud-based platforms, leaving companies concerned about the potential leakage of confidential data. Finally, the cost of training AI models in the cloud can easily reach Hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars, as most proprietary models need to be trained three to five times to meet customer requirements. These high costs deter many companies from implementing AI projects.Customized Generative AI Designed for Cloud or On-Premises Use Drastically Reduces Project Costs and TimeTo summarize the three factors mentioned above, only a few large companies have enough AI talents and capital to invest tens of millions of dollars at a time in AI servers to satisfactorily perform in-house AI model training and inference. Most medium-sized companies can only look on in envy, not to mention small and medium-sized enterprises with limited budgets and manpower.To help more enterprises and educational institutes adopt generative AI, DeepMentor launched a comprehensive hardware and software solution for designing generative AI, the Mentor series (basic to advanced versions). Customers can select to conduct different levels of all-parameter LLM training (please see the diagram below) based on hardware on Mentor Series. DeepMentor helps customers verify the training results versus actual application needs. Take the basic Mentor-100 as an example. Mentor-100 is a product of collaboration with a major industrial computer brand, Axiomtek, which specializes in creating small-scale edge computing AI servers that are quiet, energy-saving, and optimal for office hardware and software architecture. Used in conjunction with Fine-tune Expert, a training software in DeepMentor's pre-installed GAI application software package, DeepExpertTM, as well as the training counseling curriculum, enterprises from different industries and units of different levels can easily adopt applications that cater to their internal needs.Jack Wu, CEO of DeepMentor, believes that the ability to perform inference using LLMs with 7B or 13B parameters is an important step in advancing AI projects. First, even if medium or large-sized enterprises have sufficient financial resources, it may not be easy to obtain a project budget of more than ten million New Taiwan dollars if there is no supporting data to prove the viability of the project. Whereas, Mentor-100's favorable pricing is very well suited for companies to conduct early-stage proof of concept (POC) on a small scale internally. For schools, research institutes, and small and medium-sized enterprises, LLMs with 7B, 13B, or 33B parameters are more than sufficient for relatively simple usage scenarios or for performing POCs. In these cases, it is not necessary to use an LLM with 176B parameters.It is worth noting that DeepMentor, as one of the few companies focusing on providing generative AI solutions with a considerable track record, was invited to participate in the testing and promotion of the TAIDE program, a Taiwanese LLM in traditional Chinese announced by the National Science and Technology Council.Six Usage Scenarios Accelerate Implementation of Generative AIDeepMentor's DeepExpert solution has two unique features. First, depending on their business needs, customers can choose to use open-source LLMs of different types and parameters, such as Meta's Llama 2, or FFM, a LLM licensed by DeepMentor's partner TWS and pre-trained on traditional Chinese corpuses. Second, for the hardware architecture, DeepMentor is working exclusively with Phison Electronics in using their NVMe module, which is specifically designed for generative AI training and can overcome the memory capacity limitations of current GPU cards. This allows AI models to be trained with just two NVIDIA RTX A4000-ada GPU cards instead of the more expensive NVIDIA A100/H100 chips. This feature can significantly reduce the overall costs, allowing even small and medium-sized enterprises or academic institutions with limited budgets to take on generative AI projects and see the results of inference in only approximately two weeks.Leo Yang pointed out that in addition to the DeepExpertTM solution, DeepMentor also offers pre-trained and optimized AI application modules for six common usage scenarios, namely Document Expert, Code Expert, Customer Service Expert, Meeting Expert, Image Expert, and Fine-Tune Expert. Coupled with the self-developed and easy-to-use No Code tool, these modules help enterprises quickly integrate their own data to perform training and inference of their proprietary AI models. As a result, to date, they already have government agencies, financial institutions, publicly listed IC design companies, well-established enterprises from traditional industries, and retailers running point of business (POB) testing with DeepMentor to verify DeepExpertTM's outstanding capabilities as a one-stop generative AI implementation solution.DeepMentor has been working with Taiwan Tech Arena (TTA) since 2018 and has participated in a number of business matchmaking events, technical presentations, etc. The collaboration has been helpful in raising the company's profile and securing venture capital investment. DeepMentor hopes to maintain a close and cooperative relationship with the TTA in the future to lay a solid foundation for expansion into overseas markets.Enterprise-level GAI On-Premises solution of DeepMentorPhoto: DeepMentor

During the three-year pandemic, food businesses had been impacted by decreasing in-person dining and government endemic prevention policies globally. As a result, they have been collaborating with delivery platforms to sustain their survival and increase revenue. Despite increasing diversity in delivery services, people began dining in restaurants or ordering takeout again after the pandemic eased off. To avoid hefty platform fees, food businesses are seeking collaboration with other platforms. They hope that by diversifying delivery channels, they can improve their profit margin and the overall revenue.Bogi Huang, Chief Operating Officer of DotDot Global, pointed out that with the advent of the post-pandemic era, the top two delivery platforms in Taiwan have started offering takeout services. However, businesses still have to pay a fee as high as 18% to 20%, which significantly diminishes the profit of food businesses. These days, we find that businesses are working hard to attract new customers and meet the demands of regular customers. Therefore, apart from maintaining partnership with delivery platforms, they also indicate additional ordering channels on their menus for regular customers to avoid incurring high platform fees. DotDot Global has launched a smart ordering system that has been integrated with LINE, and in conjunction with a complete membership management and payment system. This system has been adopted by chains such as 50 Lan and Old God Kung Food Hot Pot, with more than 10,000 customers.DotDot Global Maximizes Popularity of LINEFollowing the rapid rise of delivery platforms, numerous takeout system solutions for the food industry have emerged. During the pandemic, many cloud-based point of sale (POS) providers introduced online ordering modules to meet a variety of operational demands. Unfortunately, they did not become mainstream systems.Upon in-depth analysis, DotDot Global identifies two major challenges that are hard to overcome. First, online ordering systems are designed for general restaurant operators and are therefore, less applicable to vastly different food businesses like bubble tea shops, and street vendors. Second, cloud-based POS providers are not familiar with consumers' ordering needs. Most online ordering modules are designed to facilitate business management, causing the interfaces to be less user-friendly. As a result, they struggle to attract consumers to adopt them.Huang said, "When entering the food market, we decided to launch our own online ordering service through LINE because it is the most popular app in Taiwan." Consumers can order online conveniently by adding the official LINE@ account of the vendor. The platform offers takeout and delivery services, as well as online payment like LINE Pay and JKOPay, making it extremely convenient for both food businesses and consumers. As businesses are facing labor shortage, online payment can eliminate the need to handle cash, make change, and save businesses from dealing with abandoned orders. Furthermore, DotDot Global has also collaborated with many logistics companies to offer delivery service for food businesses without charging high platform fees.From Philippines to Entire ASEAN MarketDotDot Global offers a one-stop solution for food businesses, covering the POS system of stores, online ordering, in-store WiFi, digital payments, integrated delivery services, food delivery logistics, and marketing strategies for attracting customers. Food businesses can customize these services according to their needs. Take the online ordering system as an example. For stores that have limited operational space and staff, DotDot Global provides cloud-based order-taking and printing machines. Once the equipment receives an order from an online platform, it automatically prints the receipt, and the store can prepare the order on the receipt without changing their workflow. This process is also very easy to learn.The LINE ordering service introduced by DotDot Global caters to the needs of different types of food businesses. Over the years, it has gradually incorporated various customization settings into its ordering system. Take bubble tea shops as an example. The online ordering system provides options for different sugar and ice levels. For braised food shops, the system offers a discount option of three products for NT$50. After its launch, the LINE ordering service immediately attracted users with all kinds of dining preferences. Furthermore, in 2023, DotDot Global introduced the SoftPOS payment service, adding contactless credit card payment to existing POS machines. Dine-in customers can safely making payment without any physical contact.Huang pointed out that DotDot Global was founded in 2014 and has since joined two to three accelerator centers. In recent years, there has been noticeable growth in Taiwan's entrepreneurial environment. The number of accelerator centers has significantly increased since ten years ago, offering a more diverse range of services for startups. Whether it is acquiring venture capital, reducing time to market, or transforming creativity into actual products or services, these resources provide tremendous help that can significantly increase the success rate of startups.DotDot Global recognizes the immense global opportunities in food delivery and takeout industry. After achieving notable success in the Taiwanese market, DotDot Global plans to expand its operations overseas, starting from the Philippines. DotDot Global is currently conducting proof of concept (POC) verification with Philippine partners in local food courts, and has received positive feedback overall. The company plans to expand into other food industries in the future.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, is introducing its comprehensive ecosystem offer for companies to transform their products with edge AI. The announcement of the ST Edge AI Suite, an integrated set of software tools free-to-use with ST hardware, takes the offer to customers one step further, enabling them to jumpstart the design and deployment of billions of connected, autonomous things embedding artificial intelligence locally. The ST Edge AI Suite will simplify the development of customers' AI solutions by exploiting ST's broad range of hardware (general-purpose and automotive microcontrollers and microprocessors, smart sensors) and related tools for embedded AI optimizations. It will expand and integrate the multiple software tools, evaluation, and development kits introduced over the past 10 years while leveraging the existing AI ecosystem of machine learning (ML) frameworks and key partners (such as Nvidia and AWS)."We are moving towards a world with tens of billions of connected, autonomous things bringing value and convenience to their users throughout all aspects of consumer life and enterprise productivity. To achieve this, AI algorithms will need to be run both in the cloud and on-device, at the edge across a broad range of devices: smartphones and connected personal devices, smart home and building control systems, industrial machines, cars, and many more," said Jean-Marc Chery, President and CEO of STMicroelectronics. "ST products are already at the core of all those devices, but it is their combination with the industry-leading, free software suite we are announcing today that will make the difference. This combination will enable the transition to a more intelligent edge, empowering customers of any size to deploy edge AI more easily and build their vision of this connected future leveraging ST's hardware portfolio."A preview of the ST Edge AI suite capabilities was presented today at ST's online Edge AI Summit. ST's industry-leading offer will empower embedded developers who want to create optimized machine-learning models, data scientists who want to run their models on an embedded device, and product designers and creators who want to redefine product greatness.With free access, ST will enable customers large and small, pooling resources and knowledge into a community-driven approach. The Suite will further enable this transformation by federating the tools and their users around a broader edge AI community.The first release of the ST Edge AI suite will be available in the first half of 2024.More information about the benefits of the adoption of edge AIEdge AI is a crucial technology for businesses to transform their products in today's connected world by bringing intelligence and decision-making capabilities closer to the data source. This offers numerous benefits in terms of speed, power consumption, privacy, security, and cost-efficiency empowering businesses to create more intelligent, responsive and efficient products that meet the demands of today's fast-paced and data-driven world.Examples of businesses transforming their products with ST:15-40% performance improvement for washing machines:A major home appliance maker is currently adopting this solution and we should see their product on the market next year. The first machine learning algorithm is creating a virtual sensor approach, estimating the weight of the clothes to be washed based on the motor current measurement. Another machine learning algorithm is collecting data from a 6-axis motion sensor to enable drum collision avoidance by calculating if the drum will touch the outer shell of the washing machine. Based on the algorithm input, a program drives the motor using exactly the current needed and adjusts the water and detergent used to save between 15 and 40% energy and water for a washing cycle. Both algorithms have been developed with NanoEdge AI and are running on an STM32G0 MCU together with an ST 6-axis motion sensor.Ultra-low-power PC activity monitoring:The HP engineering team worked closely with ST to develop and train AI models that recognize different user activities based on device and user motion. Multiple use cases were addressed, including scenarios where the laptop is placed on a table, on the user's lap, or carried inside a bag and taken out. This helped create an AI model specific to HP devices that was put on a smart 6-axis motion sensor. But the really interesting part here is the power consumption. This sensor is running an edge AI algorithm at 34 microamps. This allows HP computers to detect changes and respond accordingly. And most importantly, conserves the battery power for more critical tasks.EV motor operation and maintenance optimization:ST is working with the HPE Group to optimize the operation and maintenance of motors in electric vehicles. The challenge here was to monitor the internal temperature of the rotor of an electric motor in actual use so that power output could be optimized for more efficient and safer operation. This is something that could be done in a lab with the rotor exposed but is not possible in an actual running motor in a vehicle. The solution was to train a model and build a virtual temperature sensor with edge AI to estimate the internal rotor temperature from the external temperature measurement. The algorithm runs on the microcontroller that controls the motor – a Stellar automotive MCU. The same MCU also runs an AI algorithm that detects potential anomalies through the analysis of vibrations. The same approach can be used with other critical components, like EV batteries, where the internal temperature of the battery is not practical to measure but an edge AI model can simulate it from an external measurement.Additional technical informationST's strategy on AI relies on the availability of a comprehensive, integrated set of tools (some of them already available today), technical and educational examples, and an innovative, unified optimizer of embedded AI solutions called ST Edge AI Core Technology. The ST Edge AI Suite addresses the needs and requirements of different profiles, like Data scientists, embedded SW developers, and HW System Engineers. The suite is easy to use, with a simple and intuitive interface, available in different fashions (Desktop, CLI, Web, API).*ST Edge AI Suite works across multiple ST hardware platforms: will be working across: STM32 general-purpose MCUs, including the already announced portfolio with AI hardware acceleration, STM32N6 and STM32 MPUs built for industrial applications; Stellar automotive microcontrollers, supporting carmakers in their transition to software-defined vehicles with predictive maintenance of the electric powertrain to extend vehicle lifetime or battery management systems to maximize energy efficiency embedded intelligent sensors (based on intelligent sensor processing units, or ISPU, machine learning cores, or MLC, as well as leveraging Time-of-Flight sensors for advanced imaging), ideal for applications in industrial, automotive and anything from wearable accessories to high-end personal electronics applications. All are supported by a broad range of evaluation and development boards. *A critical component of the ST Edge AI suite is ST Edge AI Core which brings together all the SW and tools engineers need at each step of their project: The ST Edge AI Core can import ML and NN algorithms from the most widely used ML frameworks, provide a detailed analysis, optimize the algorithm for the selected devices (sensors, MCU, MPU), validate against the original model, and finally map the resulting embedded AI solution on the selected device. It will be possible to benchmark the same AI algorithm on different platforms, in pure SW or exploiting specific HW accelerators, to assess accuracy and inference time in a few clicks.*NanoEdge AI Studio autoML tool becomes free for STM32, and is now available for all ARM Cortex-M based MCUs: In parallel, ST's autoML tool NanoEdge AI Studio is getting an upgrade to the benefit of customers globally: its use will become free. The deployment of libraries created by NanoEdge AI Studio will now be at no cost for unlimited deployment on any STM32 microcontroller. In addition, as NanoEdge AI Studio targets all ARM Cortex-M-based microcontrollers, clients will now be able to build and deploy libraries, including unique on-device learning, on other ARM Cortex-M microcontrollers under a special license agreement.ST Edge AI Suite

Crypto Quantique, a leading quantum-safe cybersecurity solutions provider, is delighted to announce a strategic partnership with Blaitek, an AIOT smart-home technology company, as part of its strategic expansion in the Taiwan market.This newly formed commercial alliance is set to leverage the advanced capabilities of Crypto Quantique's QuarkLink software, facilitating secure connectivity for businesses seeking to integrate IoT products and utilizing Blaitek's cutting-edge (WiFi) technologies with cloud services. This collaboration presents a streamlined approach for customers to seamlessly incorporate innovative features into their products and conduct secure over-the-air updates throughout the entire life cycle of their devices. Notably, this is achieved without the need for substantial investment in engineering resources or acquiring in-depth knowledge of chip-to-cloud security.Proactively anticipating the quantum computing era, Crypto Quantique is enhancing the resilience of QuarkLink through the integration of post-quantum cryptography. These quantum-resistant techniques are designed to ensure the sustained efficacy of security measures, even in the face of potential quantum-powered attacks.In a landscape where over 20 countries worldwide are introducing stringent IoT security regulations, including the forthcoming EU Cyber Resilience Act, which mandates a baseline security level for compliance or risk financial penalties, Crypto Quantique's chip-to-cloud IoT security emerges as a crucial solution. This not only ensures compliance with evolving regulations but also mitigates risks across global supply chains.The collaboration between Crypto Quantique and Blaitek marks a significant stride toward providing robust, future-proof solutions in the rapidly evolving landscape of quantum-safe cybersecurity and IoT connectivity.