Cadence Design Systems, Inc. and Rambus Inc. announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Cadence to acquire the Rambus SerDes and memory interface PHY IP business. 

Rambus will retain its digital IP business, including memory and interface controllers and security IP. 

The expected technology asset purchase also brings Cadence proven and experienced PHY engineering teams in the United States, India and Canada, further expanding Cadence’s domain-rich talent base.

“Memory and SerDes IP design and integration continues to be integral to the design of AI, data center and hyperscale applications, CPU architectures and networking devices, and the addition of the Rambus IP and seasoned team further accelerates Cadence’s Intelligent System Design strategy, which drives design excellence,” said Boyd Phelps, senior vice president and general manager of the IP Group at Cadence. 

“The acquisition of the Rambus PHY IP broadens Cadence’s well-established enterprise IP portfolio and expands its reach across geographies and vertical markets, such as the aerospace and defense market, providing complete subsystem solutions that meet the demands of our worldwide customers.”

“The accelerating momentum of AI and continued growth in the data center is driving ever-increasing demand for memory and security,” said Sean Fan, senior vice president and chief operating officer at Rambus. 

“With this transaction, we will increase our focus on market-leading digital IP and chips and expand our roadmap of novel memory solutions to support the continued evolution of the data center and AI.”

The transaction is expected to be immaterial to revenue and earnings this year for each company. It is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2023, subject to certain closing conditions.