Synaptics has introduced the Astra SRW1500 Series of AI-native Edge AI MCUs designed for smart IoT edge devices. The family features an Arm Cortex-M52 core, an optional Arm Ethos-U55 Neural Processing Unit (NPU), and tri-band Wi-Fi 7 or Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 6.0 LE, and 802.15.4 connectivity, in a single package. It targets low-latency on-device AI workloads such as voice-trigger detection, sound-event classification, and AI-enhanced Wi-Fi sensing.
The series currently comes in four variants offering different wireless and USB options. Since sensing, AI processing, and wireless connectivity are integrated into a single chip, this approach helps reduce system costs, simplify PCB design, and lower power consumption in devices such as smart home hubs, building automation systems, and home appliances.
Synaptics SRW1500 Series specifications:
- CPU
- Arm Cortex-M52 application core up to 200 MHz with Arm Helium (MVE) vector extensions for DSP and ML
- Arm Cortex-R4 WiFi core with 960 KB SRAM and 1408 KB ROM
- Arm Cortex-M4 BLE/Thread core with 512 KB System RAM and 1024 KB ROM
- AI – Arm Ethos-U55 NPU @ 200 MHz; up to 50 GOPS ( SRW1563 and SRW1573 only)
- Memory – 1 MB SRAM, 128 KB ITCM, 128 KB DTCM
- Storage
- 1408 KB ROM, 32 KB on-chip anti-fuse OTP
- Octal SPI (xSPI) interface
- SDIO v3.0 Host/Target interface (backward compatible with v2.0)
- Wireless connectivity
- Wi-Fi – Up to tri-band (2.4/5/6 GHz) Wi-Fi 7/802.11be (SRW1571 and SRW1573) 1×1 SISO; Wi-Fi 6/802.11ax on SRW1561 and SRW1563
- Bluetooth – Bluetooth 6.0 with Low Energy (LE) long-range support
- 802.15.4 Radio for – Thread and Zigbee support with full Matter compliance
- Synaptics Smart Co-Ex technology for optimized 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth coexistence
- Audio
- I2S interface supporting simultaneous RX/TX
- PDM interface supporting up to 2x digital microphones
- USB – USB 2.0 dual-role (DRD) interface supporting LS/FS/HS up to 480 Mbps (SRW1563 and SRW1573 only)
- Other I/O
- Up to 32x multiplexed GPIOs
- 3x UART (2x with flow control, 1x dedicated for debug)
- 1x SPI Host (up to 25 MHz), 1x SPI Target
- 1x I2C Host, 1x I2C Target
- 6x PWM channels supporting Motor Control and LED Brightness
- 8-channel 12-bit General-purpose SAR ADC (Up to 1.536 Msps)
- General-purpose DAC
- Security
- SynaPROT Secure Island Root of Trust (PSA Certified Level 3)
- Hardware Cryptographic Accelerators – AES, DES, 3DES, RSA, SHA, MD5, and ECC
- Arm TrustZone, Secure Boot, Firmware encryption, TZC/MPC/PPC memory isolation, and Anti-rollback protection
- Power
- Operating Voltage – 3.0V to 5.0V VBAT input, with 0.8V/0.9V standard core voltage support
- Integrated PMU with Buck and LDO regulators
- Independent ON/OFF power-saving modes for WLAN, Bluetooth, and MCU domains
- Package – 115-lead DR-QFN, 10.5 x 8.6 x 0.9 mm
- Temperature Range – 0°C to +70°C ambient / -40°C to +85°C junction temperature
The SRW1500 Series of single-chip Edge AI MCUs is split into Wi-Fi 6 (SRW1560) and Wi-Fi 7 (SRW1570) families. Specific part numbers dictate the presence of the Ethos NPU and USB hardware.
On the software side, the SRW1500 uses the Astra SDK (also referred to as SR SDK for the MCU series) with support for FreeRTOS and Zephyr RTOS, along with pre-integrated Wi-Fi 6/7, Bluetooth 6.0, 802.15.4 connectivity stacks, and Matter support. The platform includes a PSA Level 3-certified security stack with secure boot and hardware-based cryptography. For AI workloads on the Arm Ethos-U55 NPU, Synaptics provides the SyNAP toolkit for model optimization and quantization (including TensorFlow Lite). More information can be found on the Synaptics Developer Portal and the Astra Documentation Hub.
Previously, Synaptics introduced the Astra SR series based on the Arm Cortex-M55 with the Ethos-U55 NPU for edge AI, and also introduced the Veros SYN4383 / SYN43756(E) wireless SoCs with Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.4, and 802.15.4. The SR series focused on AI processing but lacked built-in wireless, whereas the Veros chips provided connectivity but required an external host processor. The new Astra SRW1500 series combines both into a single chip, reducing the need for separate compute and wireless components.
The company did not mention pricing for the new Astra SRW1500 series. More information can be found on the product page and in the press release.
Debashis Das is a technical content writer and embedded engineer with over five years of experience in the industry. With expertise in Embedded C, PCB Design, and SEO optimization, he effectively blends difficult technical topics with clear communication
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Sounds very expensive