Synaptics has introduced the Astra SR200 series, a new line of xMCUs designed to support multimodal edge AI applications. The chips utilize a heterogeneous architecture that integrates the Synaptics Torq AI engine with Google Research's Coral NPU.
The hardware features high-bandwidth custom DRAM with capacity scalable up to several hundred megabytes. This configuration allows the devices to process larger AI models and more complex workloads directly on the edge.
The series is the first in the industry to combine Arm Cortex-M85 and Cortex-M52 CPU IP, delivering up to 400 GOPS of AI performance. These chips target wearables, battery-powered sensors, cameras, and industrial systems.
To support development, the company released the Coralboard SR based on the high-performance Astra SR250 chip. The board includes interfaces for microSD, NOR, MIPI-CSI/DSI, USB, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity.
