Cadence announced its sixth-generation Tensilica Hi-fi iQ DSP, a new architecture targeting voice AI and immersive audio. Compared to the previous Hi-fi 5s DSP, it delivers 2X greater compute performance, 8X higher AI performance, and over 25% energy savings. This IP is designed for the growing computational demands in home entertainment, automotive infotainment, and smartphones.

The chip addresses the industry's shift toward on-device processing for richer audio codecs and natural language processing. With AI becoming a primary user interface, the Hi-fi iQ DSP aims to offload processing from other SoC components. It supports small and large language models directly on the DSP, acting as an all-in-one AI processor for voice applications.

Cadence plans to make the Hi-fi iQ DSP available to lead customers in Q1 2026, with general availability following. The IP is also targeted for ISO 26262 functional safety certification, making it suitable for automotive applications. Future support for cache-coherent multicore configurations is planned, further enhancing its versatility for complex, power-constrained designs.