Presenting the embedded engineering sector with a well-defined and targeted operation, Bridgetek will drive the further commercialisation of some of the technologies introduced by FTDI Chip in recent years.

Its resources will be devoted to two particular product areas; the Embedded Video Engine (EVE) graphic controller ICs which enable engineers to implement more sophisticated human machine interface (HMI) systems, plus the unique and equally innovative performance-optimised microcontroller units (MCUs) with their expansive array of different connectivity options and industry-leading processing speeds.

Headquartered in Singapore, Bridgetek will have branch offices in both
Glasgow and Taipei, allowing it to rapidly respond to the needs of Western and Far Eastern customers.

Bridgetown will be benefit from a highly experienced staff with in-depth knowledge of the key applications these products address. This move will mean that FTDI Chip is able to realign itself with the USB interconnection business, where it has been a leading semiconductor supplier for over a decade.

“By spinning out our MCU and HMI divisions into a new brand, we will be much better positioning, both strategically and logistically speaking, to ex-plore the multitude of opportunities now opening up within contemporary embedded design,” says FTDI Chip CEO Fred Dart, “rather than being spread across a large scope of activities and thus too diluted to be truly effective, the separate entities of FTDI and Bridgetek will be able to attend to their respective markets and bring real value to customers situ-ated there. It represents the next phase in the progression of both these pio-neering technologies.”