Abstract:

Zero ASIC, a semiconductor startup, announces the release of Wildebeest, a new open-source FPGA synthesis tool designed to deliver the world's highest performance. The tool addresses the significant "Quality of Results" (QoR) gap that has historically existed between free, open-source tools like Yosys and proprietary, vendor-locked solutions. Wildebeest incorporates advanced, industrial-grade optimization techniques, such as using circuit size to select appropriate algorithms and leveraging advanced features of the ABC logic synthesis library. Led by Dr. Thierry Besson, a 30-year industry veteran, the project brings previously proprietary methods into the open-source domain. Benchmark results on the picorv32 CPU design demonstrate that Wildebeest surpasses both proprietary and existing open-source tools in performance, achieving lower logic depth and area (LUTs). The project's long-term goal is to create an "LLVM for synthesis," fostering a high-performance open-source ecosystem for hardware design.

Wildebeest: An Open-Source Tool to Revolutionize FPGA Synthesis

• The Announcement: Zero ASIC has released Wildebeest, a new open-source FPGA synthesis tool that aims to provide the world's highest performance, rivaling and exceeding proprietary software.
• Solving a Core Problem: Previously, FPGA developers had to choose between the freedom of open-source tools (like Yosys) and the superior performance (QoR) of proprietary vendor tools. Wildebeest was created to eliminate this trade-off.
• Advanced Optimization: The tool achieves its high performance by using sophisticated strategies, such as adapting its synthesis algorithms based on the size of the circuit and making effective use of advanced commands in the ABC logic synthesis library.
• Industry Expertise: The project is led by Dr. Thierry Besson, an industry expert with 30 years of experience, who is releasing state-of-the-art commercial synthesis techniques into the open-source community for the first time.
• Proven Performance: Benchmark results for the picorv32 CPU show Wildebeest outperforming both proprietary vendor tools and the standard open-source tool Yosys, delivering designs with lower latency (logic depth) and smaller area (LUTs).
• Future Vision: The long-term goal for the Wildebeest project is to establish an "LLVM for synthesis," creating a robust, high-performance ecosystem of open-source tools, standards, and broad hardware vendor support.
• Open-Source Availability: Wildebeest is fully open-source and the source code is available for download on GitHub for community use and contribution.