Florian “Flo” Wohlrab, CEO of OpenHW Group, leads a Canadian-based nonprofit that operates globally, focusing on open-source hardware. The organization specializes in creating industrial-grade, fully open-source RISC-V cores that are thoroughly verified and documented, all available under the Apache 2.0 license. This setup allows users to download the necessary files, including verification suites, from their GitHub repository to design their own chips and products. OpenHW Group invites users to become members and collaborate with other industry players like Silicon Labs, Talis, and Axella, to further develop and verify RISC-V IP for industrial-grade integrated circuits (ICs).
In the RISC-V ecosystem, OpenHW Group occupies a unique position. While RISC-V International provides the specifications, numerous vendors offer RISC-V solutions. At Computex 2024 in Taiwan, vendors like Andes Technology showcase their commercial RISC-V offerings. Similarly, in the US and Europe, companies like SciFive and Codasip are prominent. OpenHW Group distinguishes itself as one of the few fully open-source, commercially viable providers. Their RISC-V IP is designed to be used in ICs that can be produced in large quantities, exemplified by their CV40 core, which has been shipped over 500 million times. This core is similar in performance to an ARM M4 and is part of their open-source offerings.