PX5 RTOS
PX5 RTOS, Inc. is a privately held San Diego-based developer of a fifth-generation real-time operating system and middleware (PX5 RTOS, NET, FILE, USB, MODULES), licensed with full source code to embedded developers building safety-critical devices in automotive, industrial, medical, and rail markets under SGS-TÜV Saar functional-safety certification.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersSan Diego, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What PX5 RTOS does
PX5 RTOS, Inc. is a privately held, founder-owned developer of an integrated embedded software stack centered on a fifth-generation real-time operating system, headquartered in San Diego, California. Founded in 2023 by William Lamie — the creator of ThreadX (acquired by Microsoft) and Nucleus (acquired by Siemens), whose prior RTOSes are deployed in over 15 billion devices — the company targets safety-critical embedded applications in automotive (ISO 26262), industrial (IEC 61508), medical (IEC 62304), and rail (EN 50128) markets. The flagship PX5 RTOS offers sub-microsecond context switching, a sub-1KB footprint, native POSIX pthreads API, and patent-pending Pointer/Data Verification (PDV) memory-safety technology. PX5 NET (TCP/IP networking), PX5 FILE (FAT filesystem), PX5 USB, and PX5 MODULES extend the platform into storage, connectivity, and protected module loading; the first three are SGS-TÜV Saar certified to the highest levels of each functional-safety standard.
The company generates revenue primarily through professional software licensing — subscription, perpetual, and enterprise/SoC arrangements starting at $5K with no runtime royalties — supplemented by embedded IoT consulting and ThreadX support services delivered through its wholly owned RTOSX subsidiary (established November 2023). Its go-to-market combines direct enterprise sales, free self-serve evaluation downloads across ARM Cortex-M/R/A, RISC-V, Renesas RX, AMD MicroBlaze, and Infineon TriCore platforms, and a network of APAC distribution partners in China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, and Singapore. The technology-partner ecosystem spans Arm, IAR Systems, RISC-V International, NXP, STMicroelectronics, Renesas, Infineon, AMD/Xilinx, Microchip, and Lauterbach, with cloud integrations across Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud. No external funding rounds or revenue figures are publicly disclosed.
PX5 RTOS firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PX5 RTOS
- Legal name
- PX5 RTOS, Inc.
- Website
- https://px5rtos.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- PX5 RTOS, Inc. is a privately held San Diego-based developer of a fifth-generation real-time operating system and middleware (PX5 RTOS, NET, FILE, USB, MODULES), licensed with full source code to embedded developers building safety-critical devices in automotive, industrial, medical, and rail markets under SGS-TÜV Saar functional-safety certification.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PX5 RTOS industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Embedded Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) Software
- NAICS
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Embedded Software & Firmware Tools (Compilers, Debug, RTOS tooling) (HDAHAFAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Secure Elements & Trusted Execution Processors (TPM/TEE/Crypto MCUs) (HDAHAJAK)
Keywords
Where PX5 RTOS is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Diego
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices7 records
Markets served
PX5 RTOS business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Licensing: Annual fee licensing model with full source code access and no royalties. Includes professional support.
- Perpetual Device/Product Licensing: One-time fee for perpetual license with full source code. Also includes initial support period.
- Enterprise/SoC/Semiconductor Licensing: Custom licensing options for semiconductor companies and enterprise deployments, with potential sub-licensing options.
- Embedded IoT Consulting: Professional consulting services leveraging over a century of combined industry experience to help deliver better embedded products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Subscription License |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Perpetual License |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Enterprise/SoC/Semiconductor License |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
PX5 RTOS product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PX5 RTOS develops and licenses a fifth-generation deterministic real-time operating system (PX5 RTOS) and complementary middleware — PX5 NET (TCP/IP networking stack), PX5 FILE (FAT/exFAT file system), PX5 USB (host/device stack), and PX5 MODULES (dynamic loader) — for embedded developers building safety-critical and connected devices in automotive, industrial, medical, rail, consumer electronics, IoT, and military/aerospace applications. All three core products (RTOS, FILE, NET) are SGS-TÜV Saar certified for functional safety, and PX5 RTOS is delivered with royalty-free licensing and professional support.
Product overview
PX5 RTOS provides an integrated portfolio of embedded software solutions centered around a certified real-time operating system. The core offering consists of PX5 RTOS (the fifth-generation industrial-grade RTOS), PX5 NET (embedded TCP/IP networking stack), PX5 FILE (embedded FAT file system), and PX5 USB (USB host/device stack). These products are designed to work together as a complete embedded software foundation, with all three core products (RTOS, FILE, NET) now SGS-TÜV Saar certified for functional safety. PX5 MODULES adds dynamic module loading capability with memory protection. All products share a native POSIX pthreads API implementation and are delivered with full source code under royalty-free licensing.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- PX5 RTOS Fifth-generation deterministic real-time operating system for embedded developers; sub-microsecond context switching, <1KB flash footprint, native POSIX pthreads API, SGS-TÜV Saar certified for IEC 61508 SIL 4, IEC 62304 Class C, ISO 26262 ASIL D, and EN 50128 SW-SIL 4; royalty-free licensing with professional support.
- PX5 NET Dual IPv4/IPv6 TCP/IP networking stack with BSD Sockets API, integrated with the PX5 RTOS and SGS-TÜV Saar certified (IEC 61508 SIL 4 and EN 50128 SW-SIL 4 alongside RTOS certification) for safety-critical embedded networking.
- PX5 FILE FAT 12/16/32 and exFAT file system middleware integrated with the PX5 RTOS, SGS-TÜV Saar certified to IEC 61508 SIL 4 and IEC 62304 Class C for safety-critical embedded storage applications.
- PX5 USB PX5 USB host/device stack integrated with the PX5 RTOS, enabling USB connectivity for embedded devices; uses the open-source TinyUSB library.
- PX5 MODULES Dynamic module loader for the PX5 RTOS that enables loading of additional application code with MPU/MMU memory protection for embedded systems.
- Embedded IoT Consulting Professional consulting services leveraging extensive industry experience to help customers deliver better embedded products, working alongside PX5 RTOS technology and sold via the PX5 contact channel.
Quantifiable outcome
- PX5 RTOS is up to 22% faster than ThreadX, up to 4.4x faster than FreeRTOS, up to 7.2x faster than Zephyr in 2024 RTOS Performance Report
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use PX5 RTOS
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
PX5 RTOS technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature7 records
PX5 RTOS partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- SGS-TÜV SaarcoreSGS-TÜV Saar is the accredited independent certification body that certified all three PX5 core products (RTOS, FILE, NET) to functional safety standards IEC 61508 SIL 4, IEC 62304 Class C, ISO 26262 ASIL D, and EN 50128 SW-SIL 4.
- ArmcoreArchitecture partner for Cortex-M (M0 to M85), Cortex-R (R5 to R82), and Cortex-A processors. PX5 RTOS optimized for all major Arm architectures.
- IAR SystemscoreIAR Embedded Workbench fully supported for PX5 RTOS development. IAR compiler provides 30% performance improvement over GCC. C-SPY debugger awareness plugin available.
- RISC-V InternationalcoreRISC-V architecture supported by PX5 RTOS, enabling processor-agnostic deployment.
- LauterbachcoreTRACE32 debug and trace tools provide full PX5 RTOS awareness including threads, message queues, event flags, semaphores, mutexes, memory pools, and timers visualization.
- NXP SemiconductorscoreBroad processor support including Cortex-M7, Cortex-R52, S32K3, S32N55 platforms with free evaluation downloads available.
- STMicroelectronicscoreSTMicroelectronics processor support including STM32 series with porting guides and free evaluations.
- Renesas ElectronicscoreRenesas RX architecture support included in PX5 RTOS distribution.
- Infineon TechnologiescoreInfineon TriCore architecture (TC3xx) support in AMP mode using AURIX Development Studio. Full source code evaluation available.
- AMD/XilinxcoreAMD MicroBlaze soft core processor support using Vitis development tools with GCC compiler.
- Microchip TechnologycoreMicrochip PIC32CK GC01, PIC32CM GC00, and PIC32CZ CA80 processor support with MPLAB X IDE evaluations.
- Beijing Microtec Research Software Technology Co. LtdminorDistribution partner for China region providing local sales and support.
- Beijing Creationteks Technology Development Corp.minorDistribution partner for China region.
- Grape Systems Inc.minorDistribution partner for Japan region.
- ORBSTAR International Co., Ltd.minorDistribution partner for Taiwan region.
- PX5 TECH Co., LtdminorDistribution partner for Korea region.
- Testech Electronics Pte LtdminorDistribution partner for Singapore region.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights7 records
PX5 RTOS competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Zephyr Project: Linux Foundation open-source RTOS for resource-constrained devices, backed by Intel, NXP, Nordic, and others. Direct competitor in industrial, consumer IoT, and wearable markets; PX5 benchmarks its performance advantage explicitly against Zephyr (up to 7.2x faster).
- Lynx Software Technologies (LynxOS / MOSA.ic): Safety- and security-certified RTOS and hypervisor for avionics, automotive, defense, and industrial customers. Direct overlap with PX5's safety-certified positioning, particularly in defense/aerospace and rail-adjacent markets where Lynx is entrenched.
- SYSGO PikeOS: Safety- and security-certified RTOS and hypervisor for automotive, aerospace, railway, and industrial applications. Comparable multi-standard safety certification footprint (ISO 26262, EN 50128, IEC 61508) targeting the same European OEM design-wins PX5 pursues.
- FreeRTOS: Open-source, market-leading MCU RTOS originally developed by Richard Barry, now stewarded by Amazon under MIT license. Direct competition for PX5 on ARM Cortex-M designs across industrial and consumer IoT; PX5's value proposition rests on POSIX API, certification, and performance advantages over FreeRTOS.
- Microsoft Azure RTOS (ThreadX): Microsoft's embedded RTOS portfolio built on ThreadX (originally created by Bill Lamie, now acquired by Microsoft). The most direct competitive overlap: same founder heritage, similar middleware stack, deep silicon-vendor support, and competing for the same design-wins in IoT and industrial segments.
Broad incumbents
- BlackBerry QNX: Safety-certified real-time operating system for automotive instrument clusters, ADAS, infotainment, and industrial applications. Direct overlap with PX5's automotive ISO 26262 ASIL D use cases, but QNX also offers a broader middleware and hypervisor stack.
- Green Hills INTEGRITY RTOS: High-assurance, safety- and security-certified RTOS widely deployed in automotive, aerospace, medical, and industrial safety-critical systems. Competes head-to-head with PX5 for the same ISO 26262 / IEC 61508 design-wins but offers a broader certified toolchain and longer track record.
- Siemens Embedded (Nucleus RTOS): Bill Lamie's earlier RTOS (Nucleus), acquired by Siemens and now part of its embedded software portfolio. Competitor for safety-critical and industrial design-wins, with the added leverage of Siemens' broader industrial customer base.
- Wind River VxWorks: Long-established commercial RTOS for safety- and security-critical applications in aerospace, defense, automotive, and industrial. Comparable certified positioning (DO-178C, IEC 61508, ISO 26262) but as part of a much broader embedded software portfolio from an Intel-owned vendor.
Emerging players
- eSOL eMCOS RTOS: Scalable, POSIX-compliant RTOS targeting automotive and industrial multicore MCUs/MPUs. Comparable POSIX and safety positioning with growing relevance in zonal/centralized automotive architectures, an emerging adjacency to PX5's automotive focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
PX5 RTOS social profiles
Digital presencePX5 RTOS compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
PX5 RTOS financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PX5 RTOS leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
PX5 RTOS subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
PX5 RTOS funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PX5 RTOS 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 PX5 RTOS
What does PX5 RTOS do?
PX5 RTOS develops and licenses a fifth-generation deterministic real-time operating system (PX5 RTOS) and complementary middleware — PX5 NET (TCP/IP networking stack), PX5 FILE (FAT/exFAT file system), PX5 USB (host/device stack), and PX5 MODULES (dynamic loader) — for embedded developers building safety-critical and connected devices in automotive, industrial, medical, rail, consumer electronics, IoT, and military/aerospace applications. All three core products (RTOS, FILE, NET) are SGS-TÜV Saar certified for functional safety, and PX5 RTOS is delivered with royalty-free licensing and professional support.
Is PX5 RTOS a public or private company?
PX5 RTOS is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was PX5 RTOS founded?
PX5 RTOS was founded in 2023. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is PX5 RTOS based?
PX5 RTOS is headquartered in San Diego, United States, in the North America region.
How does PX5 RTOS make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Subscription Licensing is the primary driver. The others are perpetual Device/Product Licensing, enterprise/SoC/Semiconductor Licensing and embedded IoT Consulting.
Who are PX5 RTOS's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Zephyr Project, Lynx Software Technologies (LynxOS / MOSA.ic), SYSGO PikeOS, FreeRTOS and Microsoft Azure RTOS (ThreadX). Broad incumbents are BlackBerry QNX, Green Hills INTEGRITY RTOS, Siemens Embedded (Nucleus RTOS) and Wind River VxWorks. eSOL eMCOS RTOS is listed as an emerging player.
Does PX5 RTOS have an API?
No public API is recorded for PX5 RTOS.
What industry is PX5 RTOS in?
PX5 RTOS's product category is Embedded Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAHAFAE, Embedded Software & Firmware Tools (Compilers, Debug, RTOS tooling), with a secondary code of HDAHAJAK, Secure Elements & Trusted Execution Processors (TPM/TEE/Crypto MCUs). Its NAICS code is 5415 and its SIC code is 7373.