Could AMD's former foundry be quietly building up to become a major Arm — and AMD — rival?

• Codasip sale fuels speculation about GlobalFoundries expanding RISC-V processor capabilities
• Studio licensing strengthens case for customized silicon alongside manufacturing services
• Growing RISC-V portfolio raises possibility of future competition with Arm and AMD

Codasip, a Munich and Bristol-based semiconductor design company that develops RISC-V processor cores, is selling part of its business to an unnamed public U.S. semiconductor company, with speculation that the buyer could be none other than GlobalFoundries, AMD's former foundry arm.

Codasip confirmed the company will divest its low-end RISC-V processor design unit while directing future work toward security-focused chip architectures and system-level products.

That lower-end division includes processor cores used in embedded electronics, automotive systems, and industrial hardware, where efficient and customizable designs are widely used.

A three-part structure

GlobalFoundries is seen as the most likely buyer because it has spent the past year acquiring RISC-V processor technology through multiple deals.

The company already owns MIPS and has agreed to acquire ARC-V processor intellectual property from Synopsys, expanding its reach into higher-performance and specialized processor designs.

Adding Codasip’s entry-level RISC-V cores would extend that portfolio into simpler embedded designs, creating coverage across both low-power and more advanced processor tiers.

The agreement also includes a broad license to Studio, Codasip’s processor development software that allows customization of processor instructions.

That capability allows GlobalFoundries, which began as AMD’s manufacturing arm before becoming an independent semiconductor manufacturer, to support tailored chip development, giving customers the ability to modify processor behavior instead of relying only on fixed designs licensed from companies such as Arm.

Arm has long dominated embedded processor markets through royalty-based licensing, collecting fees from companies that build chips using its architecture.

A manufacturer that offers both fabrication services and tailored processor designs creates an alternative path, especially for companies developing automotive, industrial, and edge computing systems.

Continued expansion into processor technology could eventually place GlobalFoundries into competition with established chip designers.

Codasip described the sale as part of a broader change in direction toward what it calls cyber-resilient semiconductor architectures.

Its future development work centers on CHERI, short for Capability Hardware Enhanced RISC Instructions, a technology focused on limiting software exploits by enforcing stricter memory access rules directly in hardware.

“Cyber-resilience has become a strategic requirement for governments, infrastructure operators, and technology providers worldwide,” said Ron Black, Chief Executive Officer of Codasip.

“Traditional approaches inefficiently bolt security onto systems after the fact. Our focus is on enabling partners to build security into the fundamental architecture of compute systems from the beginning.”

The transaction is expected to close within about a month, and we'll know then whether GlobalFoundries is indeed the buyer of Codasip's low-end RISC-V processor design unit.

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