SiFive is updating its Essential cores. This licensable RISC-V family targets control functions, and the fastest models perform similarly to Arm’s Cortex-R82 and Cortex-A72. Already offering compact, low-cost CPUs, cores with wide vector units, and high-throughput application-processing CPUs, SiFive has no need to expand its portfolio. However, periodic refreshes of existing designs can fix bugs, and add features such as new SoC interfaces as well as improve their power, performance, and area. The SiFive Essential refresh won’t expand the company’s serviceable market but will provide customers with better RISC-V cores for their designs.
