Free access offered to chip design tools

In response to recent US moves to block Chinese semiconductor firms from accessing advanced chip design tools, Shanghai UniVista Industrial Software Group said it will offer free trials and evaluations of its critical electronic design automation, or EDA, tools to domestic users. This is aimed at alleviating the mounting challenges faced by China's chip industry.

Dubbed the cradle of integrated circuits, EDA software enables the design of billions of transistors on modern chips. It is essential for designing, verifying, and testing integrated circuits — forming the backbone of modern chip creation.

The US Department of Commerce recently asked leading American and European EDA software suppliers to not sell to China without first obtaining an export license, intensifying barriers to China's semiconductor development.