Aldec
Aldec is a privately held EDA company founded in 1984 that provides FPGA and ASIC/SoC design verification software, hardware-assisted emulation platforms, and DO-254 avionics compliance solutions, serving semiconductor, aerospace/defense, and embedded systems customers globally from Henderson, Nevada.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1984
- HeadquartersHenderson, United States
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Aldec does
Aldec, Inc. is a privately held Electronic Design Automation (EDA) company founded in 1984 by Dr. Stanley Hyduke and headquartered in Henderson, Nevada. The company specializes in design verification tools and hardware-assisted verification platforms for FPGA and ASIC/SoC engineers. Its software portfolio centers on Riviera-PRO (mixed-language RTL and gate-level simulator with UVM/OVM/VMM/SystemVerilog/VHDL support), Active-HDL (FPGA design and simulation IDE), and ALINT-PRO (static linting and CDC/RDC verification). The hardware-assisted verification stack includes HES-DVM (hardware emulation and prototyping supporting up to 37 million ASIC gates at 4-7 MHz), HES Proto-AXI interconnect, FPGA boards based on Xilinx/AMD and Intel devices, TySOM embedded development kits, and RTAX/RTSX radiation-tolerant adaptor boards for space applications. Specialized solutions include the DO-254/CTS Compliance Test System, qualified across 50+ avionics programs (Levels A-D), with tool qualification data packages for FAA/EASA certification.
Aldec operates a hybrid go-to-market combining direct enterprise sales with regional distributors (FTD Solutions in Southeast Asia, Oki Information Systems in Japan, NEC for CyberWorkBench HLS distribution) and OEM embedding deals with Altium and Lattice Semiconductor. The business model blends perpetual software licenses with recurring annual maintenance, hardware product sales, DO-254 compliance packages, and instructor-led training (e.g., $699 early-bird DO-254 seminars). Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company serves three primary segments: FPGA designers and engineers, ASIC/SoC design teams, and military/aerospace customers requiring DO-254 compliance, with secondary academic and high-performance computing segments. Customers include Thales, NEC, Elbit Systems, Daktronics, Renishaw, Cobham Gaisler, and UC San Diego. Aldec holds offices in the USA, Japan, Taiwan, and Israel, with geographic restrictions including ceased EDA sales in Russia as of March 2022. The company continues active product development, with releases through April 2026 including Riviera-PRO 2026.04 and ALINT-PRO 25.12.
The company earns revenue across five streams: software licenses (Riviera-PRO, Active-HDL, ALINT-PRO, HES-DVM emulation software), hardware products (HES boards, TySOM kits, daughter cards, RTAX/RTSX adaptors), annual maintenance and support contracts, training services, and DO-254 compliance solutions. Aldec markets through content (blog, webinars, whitepapers), major industry events (DAC, DVCon, Embedded World, ARM TechCon), social channels, university programs, and open-source verification community engagement (OSVVM, UVVM, EDA Playground). Patented Mirror-Box technology enables simultaneous RTL simulation and FPGA hardware emulation with module swapping without rebuild, providing a defensible technical differentiator.
Aldec firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Aldec
- Legal name
- Aldec, Inc.
- Website
- https://aldec.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1984
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Aldec is a privately held EDA company founded in 1984 that provides FPGA and ASIC/SoC design verification software, hardware-assisted emulation platforms, and DO-254 avionics compliance solutions, serving semiconductor, aerospace/defense, and embedded systems customers globally from Henderson, Nevada.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Aldec industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Electronic Design Automation (EDA) Software
- NAICS
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- EDA Software Platforms (Digital Implementation, Verification & Signoff) (HDAHAFAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Analog/Mixed-Signal & RF EDA Tools (HDAHAFAB), EDA Cloud/SaaS, Design Data Management & Collaboration (HDAHAFAJ), System-Level, Multi-Physics & Package/PCB Co-Design (EDA) (HDAHAFAD), Design Services & ASIC/SoC Implementation (EDA-Adjacent) (HDAHAFAL)
Keywords
Where Aldec is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Henderson
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Aldec business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Software Licenses: Sale of RTL simulators (Riviera-PRO, Active-HDL), linting tools (ALINT-PRO), and emulation software (HES-DVM). Both perpetual and subscription licensing models available.
- Hardware Products: Sale of HES FPGA boards, TySOM embedded development kits, daughter cards, and RTAX/RTSX adaptor boards for prototyping and emulation.
- Maintenance and Support: Annual maintenance contracts providing software updates, technical support, and access to new verification library releases.
- Training Services: Instructor-led training seminars on verification methodologies, DO-254 compliance, assertions, and tool usage.
- DO-254 Compliance Solutions: Specialized compliance test systems and qualification data packages for avionics certification.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Multi-year contract | Evaluation/Trial licenses available for download |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Commercial software licenses (perpetual) |
| Subscription | Annual | DO-254 Training seminars |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Aldec product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Aldec designs, sells, and supports Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software and hardware for digital design verification. Its core software includes the Riviera-PRO mixed-language RTL/gate-level simulator, the Active-HDL FPGA design and simulation IDE, and the ALINT-PRO static linting and CDC/RDC verification tool. Its hardware-assisted portfolio covers the HES-DVM emulation platform, HES Proto-AXI interconnect, HES FPGA boards, and TySOM embedded development kits for ASIC/SoC prototyping, complemented by the DO-254/CTS in-hardware compliance test system for avionics certification.
Product overview
Aldec provides a comprehensive Electronic Design Automation (EDA) portfolio organized around three core business units: Software Verification (VHDL, Verilog, SystemVerilog), Hardware-Assisted Verification, and Specialty Solutions (DO-254 compliance and RTAX prototyping). The core software portfolio includes Riviera-PRO as the flagship mixed-language RTL/gate-level simulator with UVM/OVM/VMM support, Active-HDL as the FPGA design and simulation IDE, and ALINT-PRO for static linting and CDC/RDC verification. Hardware-assisted verification centers on HES-DVM (the unified emulation platform with HES Proto-AXI interconnect, HES Boards, TySOM Boards, and Daughter Cards), enabling simulation acceleration, HW/SW co-verification, and prototyping. The specialty solutions include DO-254/CTS for avionics certification compliance and RTAX/RTSX adaptor boards for radiation-tolerant space applications. A cloud offering (HES-DVM Proto Cloud Edition) enables scalable cloud-based FPGA prototyping access.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Riviera-PRO: Advanced verification platform for ASIC/FPGA functional verification supporting UVM, OVM, VMM methodologies
- Active-HDL
- ALINT-PRO
- HES-DVM
- HES Proto-AXI
- TySOM
- Spec-TRACER
Products and services
- Riviera-PRO Multi-platform, high-performance, mixed-language RTL and gate-level simulator for ASIC and FPGA functional verification, with UVM/OVM/VMM support, advanced debugging tools, and transaction-level visualization for ASIC/SoC and FPGA verification teams.
- Active-HDL FPGA design creation and simulation IDE with mixed VHDL and Verilog verification, project management, graphical and text design entry, and documentation tools for FPGA design engineers.
- ALINT-PRO Static linting and design rule checking tool for early bug detection in VHDL, Verilog, and mixed-language designs, with Phase-Based Linting methodology and CDC/RDC verification capabilities for FPGA/ASIC engineers.
- HES-DVM Hardware emulation and prototyping platform providing simulation acceleration, transaction-level emulation, HW/SW co-verification, and SoC partitioning for large SoC and ASIC designs up to 37 million ASIC gates.
- HES Proto-AXI Interconnect prototyping solution for multi-FPGA design partitioning and AXI-based SoC prototyping, with automatic partitioning for multi-FPGA ASIC prototyping.
- HES Boards FPGA emulation boards including Virtex UltraScale+, Virtex UltraScale, and Virtex-7-based boards used as the hardware foundation for the HES emulation and prototyping platform.
- TySOM Boards Embedded development kits featuring Xilinx Zynq-7000 SoC, Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC, and PolarFire SoC, used for AI, DNN, and algorithm acceleration as well as IoT and embedded prototyping.
- DO-254/CTS DO-254/ED-80 Compliance Test System for in-hardware FPGA validation, supporting Levels A-D certification requirements for airborne electronic hardware and including tool qualification data packages.
- RTAX/RTSX Adaptor Boards Radiation-tolerant FPGA prototyping adapters for space and aerospace applications, supporting RTAX-S/SL and RTSX-SU/SX-A device families.
- Daughter Cards FMC and BPX daughter cards that extend the HES and TySOM prototyping platforms with additional I/O and connectivity.
- HES-DVM Proto Cloud Edition Cloud-based multi-FPGA partitioning and prototyping environment that lets teams access FPGA-based ASIC and SoC prototyping remotely via cloud infrastructure.
- TySOM EDK Embedded development kit with Python and PYNQ support for Zynq-based embedded application development, targeting algorithm acceleration and IoT prototyping.
- ALINT EDU University program version of ALINT for educational purposes, supporting HDL verification coursework and student projects.
Quantifiable outcome
- Up to 7 MHz emulation speed for designs with 37 million ASIC gates
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Aldec
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Aldec technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
Feature8 records
Aldec partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- CodasipminorJoint demonstration of unified UVM simulation environment for verifying RISC-V cores with custom instructions at Embedded World 2020.
- FTD SolutionscoreDistribution agreement for Southeast Asia region covering Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
- NEC CorporationcoreNEC serves as distributor for CyberWorkBench ASIC/FPGA High Level Synthesis solution in Japan and adopted ALINT for communication system LSI development.
- UC San DiegominorAldec provides Riviera-PRO and HES tools for UC San Diego's Master of Advanced Studies program in Wireless Embedded Systems at Jacobs School of Engineering.
- AltiumcoreOEM agreement with Altium Limited (ASX:ALU) to add Aldec's FPGA simulation capabilities to Altium Designer, expanding distribution to PCB designers using FPGA tools.
- Lattice SemiconductorcoreExtended OEM agreement with Lattice (NASDAQ:LSCC) for continued distribution of Aldec's FPGA simulator to Lattice ispLever and Diamond customers.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Aldec competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Synopsys: Synopsys is the largest EDA vendor and the most direct competitor to Aldec, with VCS simulation, ZeBu emulation, and HAPS prototyping platforms competing head-to-head against Riviera-PRO and HES-DVM across FPGA and ASIC verification.
- Silvaco: Silvaco is a smaller EDA vendor that jointly presented a mixed-signal verification solution with Aldec at DAC 2017, making it a directly comparable mid-sized EDA peer with overlapping simulation and TCAD/mixed-signal tooling.
- Siemens EDA (formerly Mentor Graphics): Siemens EDA's Questa advanced simulator is the closest mainstream competitor to Aldec's Riviera-PRO for mixed-language SystemVerilog/VHDL verification, and its Veloce emulation platform competes in hardware-assisted verification.
- Cadence Design Systems: Cadence's Xcelium simulator and Palladium emulation compete directly with Aldec's Riviera-PRO and HES-DVM, while its broader digital full-flow targets the same ASIC/SoC verification customers Aldec serves.
Others
- QuickLogic: QuickLogic provides eFPGA IP and partnered with Aldec for eFPGA simulation flow support. It is comparable as an ecosystem partner serving the same FPGA-based embedded and verification customer base.
- Altium: Altium is a PCB design tool vendor that has an OEM agreement embedding Aldec's FPGA simulation into Altium Designer. It is comparable as a strategic distribution and integration partner that brings Aldec's verification capabilities to a broader PCB-and-FPGA designer audience.
Emerging players
- Agnisys: Agnisys partners with Aldec to combine its IVerifySpec verification planning with Riviera-PRO, offering complementary verification management and spec-driven automation tools to the same ASIC/FPGA design audience.
- Codasip: Codasip is a RISC-V processor IP vendor that co-demonstrated UVM verification with Aldec at Embedded World, making it an emerging player in RISC-V verification flows where Aldec positions its tools as the verification backbone.
- Imperas Software: Imperas provides virtual platform simulation (OVPsim) that integrates with Aldec's HES-DVM for HW/SW co-verification. It is comparable as an emerging verification IP/virtual platform player addressing the same SoC co-verification workflow.
- Northwest Logic: Northwest Logic's PCIe IP cores integrate with Aldec's HES UltraScale+ emulation platform. It is an emerging verification IP peer serving the same SoC verification and pre-silicon validation workflows.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Aldec social profiles
Digital presenceAldec compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Aldec financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Aldec leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Aldec funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Aldec M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Aldec
What does Aldec do?
Aldec designs, sells, and supports Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software and hardware for digital design verification. Its core software includes the Riviera-PRO mixed-language RTL/gate-level simulator, the Active-HDL FPGA design and simulation IDE, and the ALINT-PRO static linting and CDC/RDC verification tool. Its hardware-assisted portfolio covers the HES-DVM emulation platform, HES Proto-AXI interconnect, HES FPGA boards, and TySOM embedded development kits for ASIC/SoC prototyping, complemented by the DO-254/CTS in-hardware compliance test system for avionics certification.
Is Aldec a public or private company?
Aldec is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Aldec founded?
Aldec was founded in 1984. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Aldec based?
Aldec is headquartered in Henderson, United States, in the North America region.
How does Aldec make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Software Licenses are the primary driver. The others are hardware Products, maintenance and Support, training Services and DO-254 Compliance Solutions.
Who are Aldec's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Synopsys, Silvaco, Siemens EDA (formerly Mentor Graphics) and Cadence Design Systems. Others are QuickLogic and Altium. Emerging players are Agnisys, Codasip, Imperas Software and Northwest Logic.
Does Aldec have an API?
No public API is recorded for Aldec.
What industry is Aldec in?
Aldec's product category is Electronic Design Automation (EDA) Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAHAFAA, EDA Software Platforms (Digital Implementation, Verification & Signoff), with a secondary code of HDAHAFAB, Analog/Mixed-Signal & RF EDA Tools. Its NAICS code is 5415 and its SIC code is 7372.