SANTA CLARA, CA , April 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Andes Technology (TWSE: 6533; SIN: US03420C2089; ISIN: US03420C1099), the leading supplier of high-efficiency, low-power 32/64-bit RISC-V processor cores and Founding Premier member of RISC-V International, in collaboration with Imagination Technologies, today announces the successful demonstration of Android 15 (Vanilla Ice Cream) running on a high-performance RISC-V-based hardware system. This achievement highlights the growing potential of RISC-V as a platform for rich operating systems and advanced graphical applications.
The demonstration leverages Andes’ Voyager Board, powered by its Qilai SoC, in combination with Imagination’s GPU integrated within a graphics card. Together, the companies are showcasing a highly capable, fully operational Android system built on open hardware standards.
The demonstration will be featured at the 2025 Andes RISC-V CON Silicon Valley, taking place on April 29th at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in San Jose. Andes RISC-V CON is a premier event that brings together industry leaders, developers, and technology enthusiasts to explore advancements and innovations in the RISC-V ecosystem. To register and learn more, please visit the Registration Site.
Android on RISC-V
As the world’s most widely used open-source operating system (OS), Android’s successful deployment on RISC-V represents a significant milestone. This collaboration demonstrates the seamless integration of a RISC-V CPU with advanced GPU acceleration, paving the way for high-performance Android environments across a broad range of applications – from smartphones and tablets to smart TVs, automotive systems, and wearable devices.
Key Hardware Features
At the heart of the demonstration is a Voyager Development Board, built around Andes’ 7nm Qilai RISC-V SoC. Key features include:
- Quad-core Andes AX45MP running at 2.2 GHz, powering the Android kernel. This processor is Andes’ most widely licensed for rich OS environments, offering a strong balance of performance, power efficiency, and area optimization.
- NX27V Vector Processor at 1.5 GHz, featuring a 512-bit Vector Processing Unit (VPU) designed for parallel data processing — ideal for machine learning, image processing, and signal processing workloads.
Graphics performance is enables by the Imagination BXT-32-1024 GPU integrated into the graphics card, which delivers:
- 48 Gpixels/sec fill rate
- 1.5 TFLOPS (FP32) of floating-point performance
- Dual 4K display support at 60 fps
- Full compatibility with modern graphics and compute APIs including OpenGL ES 3.2, Vulkan 1.3, and OpenCL 3.0
This powerful combination ensures a responsive and immersive Android experience on RISC-V hardware.
Collaborative Innovation
This demonstration marks a significant milestone in the evolution of RISC-V and GPU integration. The powerful combination of Andes’ RISC-V CPU cores and Imagination’s cutting-edge GPU capabilities opens up new possibilities for embedded, AI and high-performance Android applications.
“This collaboration demonstrates the robust potential of combining Andes’ RISC-V CPUs with Imagination’s advanced GPUs, setting a new standard for high-performance Android environments,” said Dr. Charlie Su, Andes President and CTO.
“Working with Andes allows us to showcase how our GPU technology empowers the RISC-V ecosystem, paving the way for more versatile and powerful computing solutions,” said James Chapman, Chief Product Officer, Imagination Technologies.
About Andes Technology
As a Founding Premier member of RISC-V International and a leader in commercial CPU IP, Andes Technology (TWSE: 6533; SIN: US03420C2089; ISIN: US03420C1099) is driving the global adoption of RISC-V. Andes’ extensive RISC-V Processor IP portfolio spans from ultra-efficient 32-bit CPUs to high-performance 64-bit Out-of-Order multiprocessor coherent clusters. With advanced vector processing, DSP capabilities, the powerful Andes Automated Custom Extension (ACE) framework, end-to-end AI hardware/software stack, ISO 26262 certification with full compliance, and a robust software ecosystem, Andes unlocks the full potential of RISC-V, empowering customers to accelerate innovation across AI, automotive, communications, consumer electronics, data centers, and mobile devices. Over 16 billion Andes-powered SoCs are driving innovations globally. Discover more at http://www.andestech.com and connect with Andes on LinkedIn, X, Bilibili and YouTube
About Imagination Technologies
Imagination is a UK-based company that creates silicon and software IP designed to give its customers an edge in competitive global technology markets. Its GPU, CPU, and AI technologies enable outstanding power, performance, and area (PPA), fast time-to-market, and lower total cost of ownership. Products based on Imagination IP are used by billions of people across the globe in their smartphones, cars, homes, and workplaces.
For more information, please visit http://www.imaginationtech.com
