RISC-V International
RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body that develops and ratifies the open, royalty-free RISC-V instruction set architecture, serving over 4,500 member organizations across semiconductor, data center, AI, automotive, and aerospace markets.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What RISC-V International does
RISC-V International Association is a non-profit standards organization founded in 2015 and headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, following a 2020 relocation from the United States to escape licensing restrictions imposed by Intel and ARM. The organization maintains and ratifies the RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA), an open, royalty-free standard providing a common platform for processor design across data center, edge AI, automotive, aerospace, IoT/embedded, and HPC workloads. Recent ratified milestones include the RVA23 profile and the RISC-V Server Platform Specification 1.0 (both 2024), which establish standardized baselines for application processors and server-class boot systems respectively.
The organization generates revenue primarily through membership fees (Premier, Strategic, and Community Organization tiers) across a membership base exceeding 4,500 organizations worldwide, supplemented by training and certification programs including the RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate (RVFA) exam bundle. Its go-to-market is community-led: technical working groups ratify specifications, regional events (RISC-V Summits, World RISC-V Days) drive adoption, and software ecosystem commitments from Canonical (Ubuntu 26.04 LTS RVA23 support), Red Hat, and PyTorch upstreaming anchor developer mindshare. Notable strategic members include Nvidia, Microsoft, Google, Huawei, Tencent, and Alibaba, and the organization operates under the Linux Foundation umbrella with a small staff of 11-50 employees. The core product is the ratified RISC-V specification library; monetization derives from the standardization, certification, and governance work required to maintain an open standard used in over 1 billion cores shipped annually (NVIDIA alone, 2024).
RISC-V International firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- RISC-V International
- Legal name
- RISC-V International Association
- Website
- https://riscv.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body that develops and ratifies the open, royalty-free RISC-V instruction set architecture, serving over 4,500 member organizations across semiconductor, data center, AI, automotive, and aerospace markets.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where RISC-V International is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
RISC-V International business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Membership Fees: RISC-V International generates revenue through membership fees from companies and individuals. Membership options include Premier, Strategic, and Community Organization tiers. Companies join to actively influence the development of the open, royalty-free instruction set architecture.
- Training and Certification: RISC-V International offers training programs and certification exams, including the RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate (RVFA) exam bundle designed for computer engineers and programmers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Other | Training & Certification - RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate Exam Bundle |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
RISC-V International product offering
Product offeringCore offering
RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body that develops, ratifies, and maintains the open, royalty-free RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA) through member-led Technical Working Groups. The organization monetizes membership (Premier, Strategic, Community Organization tiers), delivers professional training and certification programs (such as the RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate exam), and operates industry events such as the RISC-V Summits to grow the global RISC-V ecosystem spanning semiconductors, data centers, AI, automotive, and aerospace.
Product overview
RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body that develops and maintains the RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA), an open, royalty-free standard for processor design. The organization's core product is the RISC-V ISA specifications, which are developed and ratified through contributing members within Technical Working Groups. Supporting offerings include training and certification programs (RISC-V Fundamentals + RVFA Exam Bundle), developer resources (boards, labs, technical committees), compliance frameworks, and industry events such as the RISC-V Summit Europe. The ecosystem includes diverse implementations from member companies including high-performance chips for servers, edge AI applications, and specialized processors for space and automotive industries.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate (RVFA) Exam Bundle A bundled training program and certification exam for computer engineers and programmers to gain validated skills in RISC-V processors, designed to enhance career competitiveness in the open-source hardware market.
- RISC-V Ratified Specifications Library A centralized repository of all ratified RISC-V instruction set architecture specifications, providing developers and implementers with a single authoritative source for the open ISA standards.
- RISC-V ISA Specifications (RVA23 Profile) The RVA23 profile is a ratified RISC-V specification providing a standardized baseline for application processor implementations, enabling consistent software ecosystem development and compliance testing across different RISC-V implementations.
- RISC-V Server Platform Specification 1.0 A ratified specification enabling industry-standard boot systems for server and data center platforms built on RISC-V architecture, supporting POSIX-compliant operating systems and providing the foundation for enterprise server adoption.
- RISC-V Summit Europe 2026 A multi-day industry conference bringing together RISC-V members, manufacturers, researchers, academics, and students for keynotes, technical sessions, tutorials, and networking to advance the RISC-V open instruction set architecture ecosystem.
Quantifiable outcome
- NVIDIA shipped over 1 billion RISC-V cores in 2024
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use RISC-V International
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
RISC-V International technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability3 records
Feature4 records
RISC-V International partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- NASAcoreNASA joined the RISC-V Space Special Interest Group to develop standards for radiation-resistant spaceflight processors, along with ESA, Microchip, SiFive, and Frontgrade Gaisler.
- European Space Agency (ESA)coreESA participates in the RISC-V Space SIG to develop space-grade processor standards for radiation-resistant applications.
- SiFivecoreSiFive is a founding member of RISC-V International and participates in the Space SIG. The company is launching high-performance RISC-V chips for servers and edge applications, and received $400M Series G financing with NVIDIA as an investor.
- MicrochipcoreMicrochip participates in the RISC-V Space SIG for radiation-resistant spaceflight processor standards development.
- Frontgrade GaislercoreFrontgrade Gaisler collaborates in the RISC-V Space SIG to develop standards for radiation-resistant spaceflight processors.
- CanonicalcoreCanonical added full RVA23 support to Ubuntu 26.04 LTS, providing comprehensive operating system support for RISC-V application processors with POSIX-compliant OS environments.
- RED SemiconductorminorRED Semiconductor launched Ordo1 AI accelerator based on VISC architecture and is a member of RISC-V International. Partnered with Aion Silicon for test silicon and hardened IP solutions.
- Aion SiliconminorAion Silicon partnered with RED Semiconductor to deliver test silicon and hardened IP solutions for RED's Ordo1 AI accelerator.
- Red HatcoreRed Hat natively supports RISC-V architecture with major software ecosystem contributions, including PyTorch upstreaming already underway.
- Linux FoundationcoreRISC-V International operates under the Linux Foundation umbrella, with joint events including Open Source Summit Europe and Open Source Summit India.
- University of BolognaminorCo-organizer of RISC-V Summit Europe 2026 in Bologna, Italy, representing academic partnership in advancing RISC-V ecosystem.
- AkeanaminorAkeana is launching high-performance RISC-V chips for servers and edge applications as part of the RISC-V ecosystem.
- NextSiliconminorNextSilicon is productizing its Arbel RISC-V core into 64-core and 128-core enterprise processors for AI and HPC workloads.
- Epic SemiminorEpic Semi is launching high-performance RISC-V chips for servers and edge applications.
- SpacemiTminorSpacemiT is launching high-performance RISC-V chips targeting space and edge applications.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
RISC-V International competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Intel Corporation: Intel's x86 architecture is the third major ISA alongside ARM and RISC-V, dominating data center and PC markets. Intel and RISC-V International are comparable as ISA stewards, though Intel is an integrated commercial chipmaker while RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body. The RISC-V relocation to Switzerland was explicitly motivated by escaping Intel and ARM licensing restrictions.
- ARM Holdings: ARM is the dominant proprietary instruction set architecture and the primary alternative to RISC-V in mobile, embedded, and increasingly server markets. Both ARM and RISC-V International define processor instruction set standards, making them direct comparables in the ISA ecosystem, though ARM operates commercially with licensing fees while RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body.
- MIPS Technology: MIPS is a competing processor ISA historically used in embedded systems and networking, now owned by GlobalFoundries-affiliated entities. MIPS and RISC-V are comparable as alternative ISAs challenging x86 and ARM, with MIPS being the longer-established but more narrowly adopted competitor that RISC-V is now displacing in many segments.
Others
- Eclipse Foundation: Eclipse Foundation is a major non-profit open-source foundation managing standards and projects across software and increasingly hardware. Like RISC-V International, Eclipse is a membership-based standards organization, and both operate within the broader open-source foundation ecosystem, though Eclipse's focus is broader software tooling rather than processor ISAs.
- Linux Foundation: Linux Foundation is the parent organization under which RISC-V International operates, jointly hosting events like Open Source Summit. As the largest open-source foundation globally, Linux Foundation is comparable as an organizational model for sustaining open-source standards bodies, though its scope is far broader than RISC-V International's ISA focus.
Direct peers
- SiFive: SiFive is the leading commercial implementer of RISC-V cores, founded by RISC-V creators and serving as a primary vehicle for RISC-V commercialization. While RISC-V International is the standards body and SiFive is a chip IP vendor, both are foundational to the RISC-V ecosystem, and SiFive's $400M Series G and $3.65B valuation signal the commercial value being built on top of the RISC-V standard.
- CHIPS Alliance: CHIPS Alliance is a Linux Foundation project focused on open-source hardware and chip design, sharing RISC-V International's mission of open hardware collaboration. Both are non-profit consortia fostering open hardware ecosystems, and both operate under the Linux Foundation umbrella, making CHIPS Alliance the closest organizational peer in structure and purpose.
- OpenPOWER Foundation: OpenPOWER Foundation stewards the open-source Power ISA, paralleling RISC-V International's role for the RISC-V ISA. Both are non-profit standards bodies developing open instruction set architectures, and both target server and high-performance computing markets, making OpenPOWER the most structurally analogous peer organization to RISC-V International.
Emerging players
- Ventana Micro Systems: Ventana develops high-performance RISC-V application processors for data center and cloud markets. As a member of RISC-V International and a key commercial implementer targeting server workloads, Ventana represents a critical commercial use case for the RISC-V standard and a comparable peer in the RISC-V ecosystem.
- Tenstorrent: Tenstorrent is a RISC-V-based AI chip company developing high-performance processors for AI workloads. While RISC-V International is the standards body, Tenstorrent represents one of the most important commercial implementations riding on top of the RISC-V standard, with overlapping AI-native positioning and member relationship.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
RISC-V International social profiles
Digital presenceRISC-V International compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
RISC-V International financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
RISC-V International leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
RISC-V International funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
RISC-V International 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 RISC-V International
What does RISC-V International do?
RISC-V International is a non-profit standards body that develops, ratifies, and maintains the open, royalty-free RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA) through member-led Technical Working Groups. The organization monetizes membership (Premier, Strategic, Community Organization tiers), delivers professional training and certification programs (such as the RISC-V Fundamentals + Foundational Associate exam), and operates industry events such as the RISC-V Summits to grow the global RISC-V ecosystem spanning semiconductors, data centers, AI, automotive, and aerospace.
Is RISC-V International a public or private company?
RISC-V International is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was RISC-V International founded?
RISC-V International was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is RISC-V International based?
RISC-V International is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does RISC-V International make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Membership Fees are the primary driver. The others are training and Certification.
Who are RISC-V International's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Intel Corporation, ARM Holdings and MIPS Technology. Others are Eclipse Foundation and Linux Foundation. Direct peers are SiFive, CHIPS Alliance and OpenPOWER Foundation. Emerging players are Ventana Micro Systems and Tenstorrent.
Does RISC-V International have an API?
No public API is recorded for RISC-V International.