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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →ARM Holdings acquired Obsidian Software, an Austin, Texas-based processor-verification company, in a deal reported on June 17, 2011. The purchase price was not disclosed. Obsidian brought ARM its RAVEN verification tool and a team with experience supporting processor designers.
Who did ARM buy in Texas?
ARM bought privately held Obsidian Software Inc., based in Austin, Texas. EE Times reported the acquisition on June 17, 2011; it did not report a purchase price. EE Times’ acquisition report
What did Obsidian Software do?
Since 1997, Obsidian had provided processor-verification products, consulting, and training to processor designers. Its work focused on checking processor designs, including standard and custom cores, before those designs were used in products.
What was RAVEN?
Obsidian’s best-known product was the Random Architecture Verification Engine, or RAVEN. It generated test stimuli for verification of standard and custom processor cores. In practical terms, stimulus generation supplies inputs that help engineers exercise a design and assess whether it behaves as intended. The cited announcement does not give further technical specifications or detail RAVEN’s later product history.
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Why did ARM acquire a verification company?
ARM’s stated rationale was to strengthen its ability to maximize quality and reduce time to market for ARM-based systems-on-chip (SoCs). Executive Mike Inglis said the technology and people joining through the acquisition would add significantly to those capabilities. Obsidian’s validation team was expected to become part of ARM’s processor-validation team in Austin. EE Times’ report
The strategic logic was to bring verification software and experienced engineers closer to ARM’s processor work. Verification can help identify design problems before a processor is incorporated into a larger chip, although the announcement does not quantify any improvement in quality, coverage, or development time resulting from this deal.
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- A feature-rich, ready-to-use embedded software and digital circuit development board with a rich set of multimedia and connectivity peripherals to create a formidable single-board computer
- Built around the Xilinx Zynq-7000 AP SoC, with 650MHz dual-core Cortex-A9 processor and DDR3 memory controller with 8 DMA channels
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How much did ARM pay for Obsidian?
The purchase price was not disclosed in the June 17, 2011 report. The available announcement also does not state Obsidian’s revenue, customer list, employee count, or a detailed post-acquisition product roadmap, so the deal’s financial scale cannot be assessed from those disclosures.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the acquisition fits ARM’s broader business
Arm’s 2026 annual filing describes a business spanning CPU and GPU designs, systems IP, compute subsystems, software, tools, and related services. That broader portfolio provides context for the Obsidian acquisition: it added verification capability and expertise around processor design, rather than simply adding another processor core. Arm annual reports
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