San Jose, Calif. – March 9, 2026 – MIPS, a GlobalFoundries company, and Green Hills Software are collaborating to streamline the development of safety-critical systems. The partnership centers around a jointly developed Safety Software Development Kit (Safety SDK) designed to accelerate functional safety certification and reduce time-to-market for next-generation automotive and industrial applications requiring ASIL-D / SIL 3/4 compliance. This collaboration addresses the growing demand for robust and reliable embedded systems in increasingly complex applications.
The new Safety SDK aims to simplify the process of building safe, scalable platforms based on the MIPS Atlas M8500 RISC-V microcontroller. By integrating MIPS’ high-performance architecture with Green Hills Software’s established safety-certified tools and real-time operating system (RTOS), developers can more efficiently navigate the stringent requirements of industries like automotive and industrial automation. The focus is on enabling “Physical AI” platforms – real-time, event-driven systems requiring safety certification – such as motor control, traction inverters, and battery management systems.
Accelerating Safety Certification with Integrated Tools
Achieving ASIL-D and SIL 3/4 certification, benchmarks for safety-critical systems, can be a lengthy and complex process. Green Hills Software’s certified tools and RTOS technology, when paired with the MIPS M8500, are intended to accelerate this process. Specifically, the solution leverages the µ-velOSity RTOS, advanced MULTI debugging capabilities, and ASIL-D and SIL 3/4 certified C/C++ compilers. These tools facilitate earlier and more efficient validation, reducing development time and costs.
“By combining MIPS’ high‑performance M8500 architectures with Green Hills Software’s proven safety‑certified tools and RTOS, we are enabling new Physical AI platforms with real‑time, safety‑critical compute for automotive and industrial markets,” said Drew Barbier, VP IP Business Unit, MIPS. Dan Mender, VP Business Development at Green Hills Software, added, “Our collaboration with MIPS will provide customers a complete, certifiable development path powered by our industry‑leading C/C++ Compilers and RTOS technologies, helping development teams deliver safe and reliable software with greater confidence and no compromises.”
MIPS M8500 and the Rise of RISC-V in Safety-Critical Applications
The MIPS M8500 processor is designed for real-time, multi-threaded compute, making it well-suited for safety-critical applications. It’s optimized for use cases like electric vehicles, motor control, power conversion, and industrial robotics. The processor is available in an automotive-qualified System-on-Chip (SoC) platform featuring multiple lock-stepped M8500 cores, providing a scalable silicon platform capable of handling demanding safety workloads. MIPS’ technology is based on the open RISC-V instruction set architecture, promoting a modular and standards-based approach to development.
The Safety SDK integrates the MIPS M8500 ASIL-D targeted functional safety processor with the Green Hills MULTI® toolchain, Optimizing C/C++ Compilers, DoubleCheck™ static analyzer, and µ-velOSity™ real-time operating system, alongside comprehensive design services. This integrated approach aims to provide a complete hardware-software pathway to safety-certified production.
Green Hills Software has a long history in embedded safety and security. In 2008, the Green Hills INTEGRITY-178 RTOS achieved EAL 6+, High Robustness certification from the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP), comprised of the NSA & NIST – the highest level of security ever achieved for any software product. This track record of security and reliability is a key component of the collaboration with MIPS.
Looking Ahead: Early Access and SDK Availability
MIPS and Green Hills are currently gathering requirements from early access customers to refine the jointly developed Safety SDK. The SDK will include evaluation platforms, motor control demonstrations, and development tools accessible to qualified customers. The companies have not yet announced a specific release date for the full SDK, but are actively working to bring it to market to meet the growing demand for safety-certified RISC-V solutions.
The collaboration between MIPS and Green Hills Software represents a significant step towards simplifying the development of safe and reliable embedded systems. As the automotive and industrial sectors increasingly adopt RISC-V architectures, the availability of comprehensive safety certification tools will be crucial for accelerating innovation and ensuring the integrity of critical applications. The industry will be watching closely to observe how this partnership impacts the time and cost associated with bringing safety-critical products to market.
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