1991 Starting from the core

Lin Yonggu opened the curtains and stood by the window on the 23rd floor looking at the city below.

The urban area is large, but very old. It is not even a bit worse than T Bei, and it is not even comparable to X Bamboo. The builders on the construction sites didn't seem very enthusiastic either - in short, there was a feeling of not being very energetic.

However, Lin Yonggu admired Yuan Xin's style downstairs. He got straight to the point and went straight to the point.

How can those who are really engaged in technology have so much time to drink Kung Fu tea?

Jiang Mingqi's voice came from behind: "Brother Yonggu, we won't be monitored here, right?"

Lin Yonggu turned around and saw his colleague's guarded look. He couldn't help but be speechless: "Are you thinking too much? We are not military or political officials. Why are we being monitored?"

Jiang Mingqi smiled coquettishly: "Then have you contacted the headquarters?"

Lin Yonggu shook his head: "Not yet. Although Manager Pan has always said that Xiao Su always talks things down, but he still has to meet his father. And this matter... what do you think?"

Jiang Mingqi and Chen Zihao looked at each other and said cautiously: "I don't have much opinion, but it is certain that the chip technology of the mainlanders is very poor. Even if they want to reverse the trend, they will definitely not see the effect in ten or eight years."

Lin Yonggu smiled and shook his head: "Reverse engineering still depends on the implementation of microcode. Masking is just a process method. And the main problem is that the headquarters will probably not agree to them."

"Then just refuse it directly. They won't stop selling our software, right?"

"Of course it won't happen, but without their designers to connect with us, it will be very inconvenient for us to do reverse engineering or design." Lin Yonggu rubbed his brows, hesitating.

As the director of UMC's IC design department, Lin Yonggu is very aware of UMC's current situation. The top management has revealed their intention to spin off or even sell the IC design department and turn it into a professional foundry like TSMC. This has made the designers of the IC department feel inexplicable panic. At present, except for Cyrix, there is no A mature Fabless company (a fabless independent IC design company).

Perhaps Yuanxin is an emerging IC design company.

When the prospects of independent IC design companies are still unclear, UMC's IC design department is certainly not willing to take the risk of being divested. Everyone knows that it is easy to rely on a big tree to enjoy the shade.

"The main thing is to see how much help they can provide us." Lin Yonggu sighed softly, and immediately smiled: "Ignore this for now, let's take a shower and have a rest. Let's see what their boss says in the evening. We Chinese people will talk about it. Things are always settled over the wine table."

*

*

At five o'clock in the afternoon, Su Xinghe came to the company on time and spent an hour figuring out the situation. At six o'clock, he took Qin Weimin, Su Yuanshan, Xi Xiaoding, Zhang Ke and Pan Xiaojun to the 23rd floor on time. After exchanging pleasantries, the group went directly to the revolving restaurant on the 32nd floor.

Although Professor Su Xinghe is a standard scholar, he is also a warrior who has been tested by alcohol, not to mention Zhang Ke and Pan Xiaojun. Within a few rounds, the three friends on the other side were overwhelmed and dizzy.

Of course, we are all intellectuals, and even when we drink, we should do so in a moderate manner, and we will not get drunk or pretend to be drunk. .

Su Xinghe winked at his son.

Su Yuanshan understood and gave Lin Yonggu two pieces of dried tofu with a smile: "Mr. Lin, it is said that dried tofu relieves hangover. Come and try our specialty."

Lin Yonggu's cheeks were already slightly red and he was a little drunk, but his eyes were still clear. He nodded and smiled: "I heard my father talk about Doucheng's dried tofu."

"Who is Mr. Lin's father?"

"My father is from Doucheng, and I was born in a military village. It's a pity that I can't speak my hometown dialect."

"Oh! Does Mr. Lin want to go back to Doucheng for a visit this time?"

"It's not necessary this time because it's official business. Besides, I don't know anyone there. I'd better wait until I have the opportunity to bring my father back next year."

"I admire the distinction between public and private affairs." Su Yuanshan chuckled: "It seems that our idea of ​​getting Mr. Lin drunk and then letting the lion open his mouth when he took advantage of it failed."

A joke made everyone feel relaxed again. Lin Yonggu also held the tea cup with a smile. He looked at Su Xinghe and finally looked at Su Yuanshan.

Judging from his performance just now, Mr. Xiao Su can indeed fully represent his father. This made Lin Yonggu start to think about his words.

"I understand Mr. Su's point, but... with all due respect, reverse engineering has no practical benefits except for giving you more experience. What's more, as a professional EDA and IC design company, you You can directly design a brand new CPU without any need for reverse engineering."

"Well..." Su Yuanshan also clasped the tea cup lightly and smiled: "Mr. Lin is right, but we don't have much experience in designing CPUs now, so it would be good to take a look at it. What's more, both of us still have We can learn from each other and improve each other.”

"It's very difficult," Lin Yonggu shook his head and said, "You know the current relationship between the two parties. Whether we come here or you go there, we have to go through Xiangjiang, and there are many complicated procedures to go through when staying - we won't talk about these first. Even if there is no other interference, UMC senior officials will consider it from the perspective of commercial confidentiality."

"What if our people join you?" Su Yuanshan narrowed his eyes, stared at Lin Yonggu and said softly: "Let's work in reverse and get 486 out. What does Mr. Lin think?"

"We will send engineers who have participated in EDA development and are proficient in EDA design to teach your designers step by step. At the same time, the subsequent version upgrades of Yuanxin EDA will be unconditionally compatible with your production line. As long as it passes our simulation verification, it will It can greatly conform to your production line, thus improving the probability of tape-out and mass production yield rate.”

Lin Yonggu took a breath and his eyes suddenly became sharp.

If the core competitiveness of an IC design unit is to use EDA to quickly and efficiently design IC chips that meet user needs, then the core competitiveness of a wafer factory, in addition to the manufacturing process, is the success rate of tape-out and mass production. Yield.

Although the blame for tape-out failure is generally blamed on the IC designer, it is always unpleasant if it is blamed too much - if the blame can be eliminated as much as possible before tape-out, it will be beneficial to both the wafer factory and the designer. , is a beautiful thing. Not to mention mass production yield.

Although the mass production yield can be improved through continuous adjustments on the subsequent production line, if a good yield starting point can be reached through EDA at the beginning, this will undoubtedly be a happy thing for everyone.

"Finally, the reverse-engineered 486 is definitely not authorized by X86, but it doesn't matter...at worst, it won't be sold in the West! The domestic market is starting now. As long as it is sold cheaper, it will not lose the cost." Su Yuanshan said with a smile in his eyes. : "What do you think, Mr. Lin?"

Lin Yonggu stopped turning the tea cup, took another breath, and stared at Su Yuanshan after a few seconds of silence: "If, I mean if, the senior management of UMC is willing to join us in cooperation, how many people are you going to send over? What positions are they in?"

Su Yuanshan smiled casually.

"In the tenth decade or so, in addition to EDA engineers, there are also chip design and mask reverse engineering engineers - in fact... counterfeiting... everyone is somewhat familiar with it, right..."

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