Synopsys, Inc. (NASDAQ: SNPS), the world leader in semiconductor design software, today announced that NVIDIA Corporation has delivered its new GeForce™ 6800 graphics processing unit (GPU), which was designed with Synopsys' Galaxy™ Design Platform. Containing 222 million transistors, the GeForce 6800 is the world's most advanced GPU, featuring 16 superscalar pipes. The GeForce 6800 was designed using Synopsys Galaxy Design Platform products, including Design Compiler® (DC) Ultra, Power Compiler™, Module Compiler™, Physical Compiler®, Astro™, PrimeTime®, Star-RCXT™ and Hercules™, and was implemented in 0.13 micron IBM silicon. All synthesized logic on the chip was produced using DC Ultra™, and the entire design was verified using Synopsys' Discovery™ Verification Platform with a simulation farm of VCS® HDL simulators.

"The GeForce 6800 is one of the most complex, advanced chips in the world," said Chris Malachowsky, co-founder and vice president of hardware engineering for NVIDIA. "Performance is the name of the game in graphics, so the sheer size and frequency requirements of this design meant that timing closure was critical to our success. The high performance results of Synopsys' Galaxy Design Platform flow combined with Synopsys' excellent support helped us to set a new performance standard in graphics processing."

The NVIDIA GeForce 6 Series, which includes the flagship GeForce 6800 Ultra and GeForce 6800, is designed to deliver a new level of performance for powering 3D graphics and video processing. The GeForce 6800 GPUs feature a superscalar 16-pipe design for superior performance. This design includes an advanced new 3D graphics architecture that supports Microsoft® DirectX® 9 Shader Model 3.0 for ultra realistic image quality.

"NVIDIA's designs are always at the leading edge of chip design," said Antun Domic, senior vice president and general manager of Synopsys' Implementation Group. "By working closely with NVIDIA to help ensure the success of their chips, we further our understanding of the complexities of advanced chip design, refine our design flow, and advance the state-of-the-art technology in our products."

About Synopsys

Synopsys, Inc. is the world leader in electronic design automation (EDA) software for semiconductor design. The company delivers technology-leading semiconductor design and verification platforms and IC manufacturing software products to the global electronics market, enabling the development and production of complex systems-on-chips (SoCs). Synopsys also provides intellectual property and design services to simplify the design process and accelerate time-to-market for its customers. Synopsys is headquartered in Mountain View, California and is located in more than 60 offices throughout North America, Europe, Japan and Asia. Visit Synopsys online at http://www.synopsys.com/ .

NOTE: Synopsys, the Synopsys logo, Design Compiler, Physical Compiler, PrimeTime and VCS are registered trademarks of Synopsys, Inc., and Galaxy, Discovery, Astro, Module Compiler, Power Compiler, Star-RCXT and Hercules are trademarks of Synopsys, Inc. NVIDIA and GeForce are trademarks and /or registered trademarks of NVIDIA Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other products mentioned in this release are the intellectual property of their respective owners.

SOURCE: Synopsys, Inc.

CONTACT: media, Robert Smith of Synopsys, Inc., +1-650-584-1261, or
rsmith@synopsys.com; or Sarah Seifert of Edelman, +1-650-968-4033, or
sarah.seifert@edelman.com, for Synopsys, Inc.

Web site: http://www.synopsys.com/