The rapid technological advancements are reshaping industries, particularly through AI/ML, 3DIC/HI, photonics, and quantum computing. It explores how these innovations are driving productivity, transforming design, and manufacturing processes, and opening new opportunities for businesses. As AI/ML adoption accelerates, it fosters both operational efficiency and innovation, while 3DIC and chiplet solutions are revolutionizing packaging techniques. Additionally, the article highlights the growing significance of photonics and the emerging field of quantum computing, which are poised to redefine communication systems and computational capabilities, marking the onset of a new technological era.
“In 2025, photonics solutions will become mainstream and drive investments and hiring in this space. Semiconductor foundries will innovate with newer process variants and help drive the ecosystem forward.”
Nilesh Kamdar, Senior Design and Verification Business Unit Lead of Keysight EDA
Widespread AI/ML adoption boosts productivity
Businesses and individuals will move artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) solutions from the curious and interesting to the inevitable. Broad adoption will drive productivity improvements and true innovation. In the engineering and design space, AIML solutions will move from the digital to the analog and make a bigger impact on RF/Analog designers. Generative AI will impact the design community, where ML-based synthesis solutions will help create new and unique designs. Businesses will hire data specialists and assign Chief Data Officers to focus on the fuel that drives all AI/ML work: DATA. The impact on productivity will improve across all functions due to advancements in AI/ML.
Maturing HI/3DIC ecosystem represents new opportunities
Chiplet and 3DIC solutions will continue to become more mainstream. You can expect additional packaging houses to join the Chiplet ecosystem and help standardize many aspects of design, and collaboration. Advanced packaging techniques, including heterogeneous integration, will give a technological and business advantage to system companies, which will continue to attract investment in this space. The design solutions for creating 3DIC/HI designs will mature, with system designers being able to do upfront design and trade-offs more easily.
Mainstream photonics gives way to quantum
The push towards generative AI solutions means that traditional computing has to re-invent itself and produce exponential throughput. Traditional electronic solutions are running out of steam and the first breakthrough on the horizon is silicon photonics and more optical communications. Some level of optical communications is already prevalent today (for example, trans-continental communications are done via underwater fiber optic cables), but with the advent of silicon photonics will start replacing short-haul transport. In 2025, photonics solutions will become mainstream and drive investments and hiring in this space. Semiconductor foundries will innovate with newer process variants and help drive the ecosystem forward.
The final frontier after photonics is quantum computing. This is an exciting area of research, and we already have quantum computers that can handle more than a thousand qubits. With the pace of research and innovation, ten thousand qubits are just a few years away. Quantum research will spread to more countries (especially Asia) as no region wants to cede any computing advantage to another.
