The evolution of Physical AI, where intelligence is embedded directly into devices to interact with the real world, is receiving a significant boost from a new strategic partnership. Ceva, Inc., the leading licensor of silicon and software IP for the Smart Edge, has announced a partnership with embedUR systems to launch a dedicated instance of the ModelNova platform for its NeuPro NPU family. This collaboration expands Ceva's Edge AI ecosystem by delivering a rich library of developer-ready AI models optimized for its ultra-low-power and high-performance Neural Processing Units.
Quick Intel
Ceva and embedUR partner to launch a ModelNova platform for Ceva's NeuPro NPUs.
The platform provides a curated library of developer-ready, optimized AI models.
It supports ultra-low-power NeuPro-Nano for wearables and high-performance NeuPro-M for robotics.
Models enable features like object detection, pose estimation, and audio denoising.
The initiative accelerates the development of Physical AI at the edge.
The platform is available immediately for rapid prototyping and deployment.
Accelerating Development for the Smart Edge
The partnership is designed to address the critical need for rapid development in the Physical AI space. ModelNova, developed by embedUR, is a developer-centric platform that provides Edge AI building blocks, including pre-trained models, datasets, and use-case blueprints. The Ceva-specific instance will host a curated selection of models from both companies, enabling engineers to quickly prototype and deploy AI features without starting from scratch, significantly reducing time-to-market for a wide range of applications.
Powering a Broad Spectrum of Edge Devices
The platform is purpose-built to cover the full spectrum of edge AI inference. For ultra-low-power applications like wearables, hearables, and smart home devices powered by the NeuPro-Nano NPU, the platform offers optimized models. It also supports larger workloads on the high-performance NeuPro-M NPU for use cases in industrial automation, robotics, smart cameras, and AR/VR. The collaboration also includes a roadmap to support emerging transformer-based architectures and generative AI at the edge.
Enabling Autonomous, Real-World Interaction
At its core, this initiative supports the shift to Physical AI, where devices can sense, decide, and act autonomously without relying on cloud connectivity. The models available at launch on ModelNova are optimized with TensorFlow Lite Micro and integrated with Ceva's NeuPro Studio SDK. They support key functionalities for real-world interaction, including object detection, face recognition, pose estimation, and audio denoising, each accompanied by performance metrics and execution scripts for easy integration.
By combining Ceva's scalable NPU hardware with embedUR's curated software model library, this partnership provides a comprehensive solution for building the next generation of intelligent edge devices. It empowers developers to overcome the complexity of AI implementation, fostering innovation in a market where low latency, privacy, and power efficiency are paramount.
embedUR systems is a Silicon Valley-based engineering company specializing in embedded software, connectivity, and Edge AI. For over two decades, embedUR has helped leading networking, telecom, and semiconductor companies accelerate product development and bring devices to high-volume production.
As a leader in Edge AI enablement, embedUR created ModelNova, a platform that provides pre-trained models, datasets, use-case blueprints, and development tools to help teams prototype and deploy AI at the edge faster than ever. With deep expertise spanning firmware, device intelligence, and AI optimization, embedUR bridges the gap between silicon and real-world products.
At Ceva, we are passionate about bringing new levels of innovation to the smart edge. Our wireless communications, sensing and Edge AI technologies are at the heart of some of today's most advanced smart edge products. From Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, UWB and 5G platform IP for ubiquitous, robust communications, to scalable Edge AI NPU IPs, sensor fusion processors and embedded application software that make devices smarter, we have the broadest portfolio of IP to connect, sense and infer data more reliably and efficiently. We deliver differentiated solutions that combine outstanding performance at ultra-low power within a very small silicon footprint. Our goal is simple – to deliver the silicon and software IP to enable a smarter, safer, and more interconnected world. This philosophy is in practice today, with Ceva powering more than 20 billion of the world's most innovative smart edge products from AI-infused smartwatches, IoT devices and wearables to autonomous vehicles and 5G mobile networks.
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