Chat GPT deep dive into potential/likely costumer engagements.
(Many of you will be familiar with this but it is an interesting summary)
Below is an evidence-based “dot-joined” map of the most credible real-world product integrations and near-term commercialization paths for BrainChip’s Akida (AKD1000 / AKD1500 / Akida 2 / Akida IP)—focused on who is building with it, where it fits in their product lines, and what that implies for likely downstream customers.
I am only using public, attributable material (company releases, partner product pages, program documents). Where I infer “likely next customers,” I label it clearly as inference—not fact.
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Highest-signal, real-world product engagements (already in a product, or in formal product evaluation)
1) Frontgrade Gaisler: GR801 / GRAIN space-grade SoC line with Akida integrated (IP)
• What’s real: Frontgrade Gaisler publicly states it is developing the GR801 and that it “includes the Akida brain-inspired neural network technology”.
• Why it matters: Frontgrade Gaisler is not a “demo partner”—they sell space-grade processors/SoCs into flight programs. A GR801-class part becoming a catalog item effectively creates a distribution channel into spacecraft primes and their supply chain.
• Near-future customer set (inference): If GR801 enters broader adoption, the natural buyers are space integrators and primes already buying Gaisler/Frontgrade processor IP and rad-tolerant SoCs (e.g., payload autonomy, onboard ISR/EO processing, comms autonomy). This is “quiet” because it shows up first as processor selection on mission BOMs, not in flashy PR.
2) ESA-linked space deployment pathway is explicit (Frontgrade license + ESA evaluation)
• BrainChip’s quarterly report explicitly ties the Frontgrade license to ESA: Akida 1.0 IP incorporation into space-grade SoCs and “paves the way… to be deployed in space by the European Space Agency (ESA)” and references joint evaluation work with ESA + Frontgrade + BrainChip.
• This is one of the strongest “non-obvious” dots because ESA/space work typically appears as program deliverables before it appears as “customer wins.”
3) Bascom Hunter: AKD1000 is already inside a rugged defense VPX card (SNAP Card)
• What’s real (product page): Bascom Hunter’s 3U OpenVPX SNAP Card states it combines an RFSoC FPGA with five BrainChip AKD1000 processors.
• Why it matters: VPX/SOSA cards are a standard procurement object in defense. This is not “maybe”—it’s a shipping defense electronics form factor with Akida inside.
4) Bascom Hunter: formal AKD1500 “full scale evaluation of commercial products” contract
• BrainChip reports a US$100k contract with Bascom Hunter for AKD1500 chips for full scale evaluation of commercial products, and notes Bascom Hunter integrates third-party tech for Defense and Intelligence applications.
• Dot-join insight: This is a classic path: AKD1000 in current card → AKD1500 eval → next card spin / module upgrade (inference). If Bascom’s VPX line moves to AKD1500, you often see it first as an updated module datasheet, not a market announcement.
5) Parsons: explicit strategic agreement for defense systems + “designed into end solutions”
• BrainChip has a strategic agreement with Parsons to accelerate edge AI defense systems (as referenced in BrainChip materials and related posts).
• Separately, BrainChip states the AKD1500 “has been delivered and designed into several end solutions… including Parsons, Bascom Hunter and Onsor Technologies.”
• Why it matters: Parsons is a prime contractor / systems integrator; “designed into” strongly implies the engagement is beyond evaluation.
6) Onsor Technologies: AKD1500 in a commercial medical device (seizure-detecting smart glasses)
• BrainChip positions Onsor’s seizure-detection glasses as a customer success using AKD1500.
• Why it matters: This is the cleanest example of AKD1500 as a component in a real product in healthcare—useful as a reference design for other wearables/medtech OEMs (inference).
7) Arquimea (Spain): drone + Prophesee event camera + Akida for water-safety detection
• BrainChip states Arquimea demonstrated Akida with a Prophesee Metavision event-based camera on a low-power drone to detect distressed swimmers/surfers.
• Dot-join insight: This is a practical proof that event cameras + neuromorphic compute can run at the edge on a UAV. The “quiet” next step is usually maritime safety agencies / coastal surveillance integrators (inference), especially where endurance/latency matters.
8) Intellisense Systems: Akida selected for cognitive radio; NASA use case named
• BrainChip states Intellisense selected Akida for SWaP-constrained platforms (including spacecraft/robotics) and explicitly references a NECR device where Intellisense says it provides NASA applications, planned for a Phase II prototype integrating Akida.
• Why it matters: “Phase II prototype” language is a meaningful maturity marker in US government-adjacent development cycles.
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Strong “pipeline” signals (credible pathways to new customers, but not yet confirmed end-customer design wins)
9) Blue Ridge Envisioneering (BRE): tactical edge collaboration backed by a Naval Air Warfare Center contract
• BrainChip’s BRE announcement includes a Naval Air Warfare Center contract numberand states BRE will integrate Akida processors into tactical devices.
• Dot-join insight (inference): BRE/NAWC-backed work typically translates into program-specific prototypes that can later be pulled into broader platforms if the performance/power story holds.
10) Lorser Industries: neuromorphic SDR devices (system-level manufacturing/integration)
• BrainChip and Lorser state they will use Akida to deliver neuromorphic solutions for software-defined radio devices, emphasizing SDR tasks like signal classification, modulation/demodulation, encryption/decryption, and anomaly detection.
• Dot-join insight (inference): If Lorser turns this into a sellable SDR module/line item, the downstream customer universe becomes defense comms, aerospace comms, navigation, and SIGINT-adjacent integrators.
11) HaiLa: AKD1500 + ultra-low-power Wi-Fi backscatter for “leading OEMs” in multiple domains
• BrainChip and HaiLa state they’re working with leading OEMs and ecosystem partnersacross medical, environmental, and infrastructure monitoring, pairing AKD1500 with HaiLa’s BSC2000 to enable microwatt-class connected sensors.
• Dot-join insight (inference): The real commercialization vector here is module makers and sensor OEMs who can bundle connectivity + edge inference into a single reference design.
12) Andes Technology (RISC-V): AKD1500 integrated on QiLai Voyager platform
• BrainChip describes integrating Akida with Andes’ QiLai platform and highlights this as a way these can be used in production SoCs.
• Andes describes its footprint as “over 16 billion Andes-powered SoCs.”
• Dot-join insight: This is less about one customer and more about distribution leverage: if Akida becomes a “known-good” companion IP in the Andes ecosystem, it can surface inside many unnamed SoC design houses that already license Andes cores (inference).
13) Akida 2: “no hardware” Akida Cloud and commercialization emphasis
• BrainChip is explicitly pushing Akida 2 access via “Akida Cloud… live demos on Akida 2 with no hardware requirements.”
• Why it matters: This is often how “quiet” design-ins start: developers validate performance without hardware lead times, then move into evaluation silicon/modules (inference).
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RTX / Raytheon angle: what’s supportable from public evidence
• BrainChip’s December 2024 quarterly report states an SBIR project focused on micro-Doppler radar signature analysis, and that BrainChip was negotiating with a major defence industry contractor as a subcontractor to complete the contract award.
• Some secondary commentary explicitly names Raytheon/RTX, but that is not consistently corroborated by primary documentation; the most defensible statement is that a major defense contractor is involved per BrainChip’s own report.
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Practical “dot-joining” watchlist (where the next customer names typically appear first)
If you want to surface non-obvious, near-term customer engagements early, the highest-yield places to monitor are:
• Defense module catalogs (VPX/SOSA cards, rugged edge servers): look for refreshed datasheets that swap AKD1000 → AKD1500 (Bascom Hunter is the clearest example path).
• Space-grade processor roadmaps and ESA program deliverables tied to Frontgrade Gaisler GR801 / GRAIN.
• Cognitive radio / space comms prototypes (Intellisense NECR Phase II prototype).
• Edge drone autonomy demos moving into pilots (Arquimea + Prophesee + Akida).
• RISC-V platform partner announcements where Akida becomes a standard add-on in an ecosystem (Andes).
• Ultra-low-power sensor OEM announcements in medical/infrastructure monitoring that mention always-on anomaly detection + coin-cell longevity (HaiLa + AKD1500 pairing is directly positioned at this).
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What I did not do (by design)
• I did not claim any unnamed company is a “customer” unless there is a public statement supporting it.
• I did not treat generic partnership announcements as “design wins” unless there is evidence of integration, evaluation for commercial products, a Phase II prototype, or a product page.
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