- The Shanghai EDA maker launches a suite of AI agents for chip verification and a new 3DIC physical-design tool
- The move comes as global EDA leaders race to bring agentic AI into semiconductor design, opening a new front in China’s effort to challenge their dominance
Shanghai-based UniVista (合见工业软件), a leading Chinese digital EDA company, unveiled on September 1 what it called China’s first comprehensive Agentic EDA strategy, alongside a new 3D chip physical-design tool and other products.
EDA, or electronic design automation, is essential software used to design and verify chips and is often called the “mother of chips.”
Agentic EDA refers to AI systems that can understand design objectives, execute tasks autonomously and reason about the results, rather than simply helping engineers with repetitive work.
‘China’s first EDA agent suite’
The centerpiece of UniVista’s launch is UniVista Verification GOAT, which the company describes as China’s first EDA agent suite covering the full digital-chip verification workflow.
It introduces four expert-level AI agents spanning key verification stages including software and hardware simulation.
The suite combines AI with UniVista’s proprietary EDA tools. Engineers define the objective, the agents analyze and execute tasks, and the EDA tools generate real engineering feedback. Engineers then make decisions based on a traceable chain of evidence.
“The core value of AI-enabled EDA is not having a model simply declare that a task is complete, but building a closed loop linking verification objectives, engineering methods, tool feedback and an evidence chain,” said He Peixin (贺培鑫), CTO of UniVista.
UniVista also launched UniVista 3DIC Designer, a physical-design tool built for advanced domestic process nodes. The company says it fills a gap in China’s commercial-grade 3DIC physical-design software market.
3DIC, or three-dimensional integrated circuits, vertically stacks multiple chips in a single package — effectively turning chip packaging into a “high-rise building” that requires specialized software to plan.
From tools to AI agents
The launch comes as the world’s three largest EDA companies — Synopsys, Cadence and Siemens EDA — have all introduced agentic AI products since the start of 2026, seeking to reshape semiconductor design with AI.
UniVista’s broader Agentic EDA strategy marks a shift for China’s EDA industry from catching up with individual tools to competing over how AI can redefine the design workflow.
The company now offers nearly 50 products and is using agentic AI to reposition its technology stack.
Why it matters globally
The global EDA market has long been dominated by Synopsys, Cadence and Siemens EDA, which together account for roughly 74% to 78% of the market, according to data researcher TrendForce.
Their combined share in China is even higher, at more than 80%, while domestic Chinese vendors account for less than 5%.
Chinese EDA companies have traditionally focused on filling gaps by replicating or matching established tools from global leaders.
Agentic AI adds a new dimension to that competition: the question is no longer only which tool is more mature, but which AI system can do more to reshape the chip-design process.
With global EDA leaders only recently beginning to roll out agentic products, UniVista’s comprehensive strategy gives China’s EDA industry an opportunity to compete on a new technological layer without being as far behind as it has been in conventional EDA tools.
Header image generated by Doubao
