Accenture buys chip design firm Excelmax

Global information technology (IT) services firm Accenture has acquired Bangalore-based semiconductor design services firm Excelmax Technologies for an undisclosed sum, the US-based IT firm said.

The acquisition of Excelmax enhances Accenture’s capabilities across every aspect of silicon design and development—from concept to production, the company said in a statement.

Set up in 2019, Excelmax provides turnkey semiconductor solutions, from high-level design to detailed physical layouts ready for manufacturing. Excelmax chips are used in consumer devices, data centers, artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, and edge AI deployments in automotive, telecommunications, and high-tech industries.

Edge AI deployments involve placing AI algorithms directly on devices (and not on the cloud or servers) such as IoT devices, smartphones, or local hardware, enabling faster processing, improved privacy, and greater efficiency when compared with centralized cloud solutions.

The semiconductor designing market is booming as data centers proliferate amid the increasing use of AI and edge computing. The growing consumer appetite for electronics is also leading to new investments in the chip design space.

Karthik Narain, group chief executive—technology at Accenture, said, “With the rapid evolution of new technologies like generative AI and the growth of connected products, more intricate, specialized chips with enhanced performance and efficiency are required.”

Excelmax Technologies employs 450 professionals, who will now be part of Accenture.

Shekhar Patil, founder and CEO of Excelmax Technologies, said, “Our focus has always been on developing the best talent to deliver tailor-made solutions for our global clients that help them build and maintain competitive advantage.”

Accenture’s latest acquisition comes after its added XtremeEDA, an Ottawa, Canada-based silicon design services company, in 2022.