At Embedded World 2025, Ofer Austerlitz spoke with Robert Thompson from NXP to discuss the expanding i.MX9 processor family. This conversation explores how the i.MX91, i.MX93, and the newly introduced i.MX95 processors address various industrial applications with their distinct performance profiles and capabilities. As longtime development partners, Variscite and NXP continue to collaborate on delivering scalable embedded solutions that meet the requirements of engineers and system designers across multiple sectors.
Ofer Austerlitz: With me today is Robert Thompson from NXP. Embedded World 2025 has been an amazing show so far, Robert, with surprisingly great weather for Germany at this time of year.
Robert Thompson: Absolutely. It’s been totally enjoyable.
Ofer: Variscite has introduced different iMX9 processors—we have the i.MX91 and i.MX93, and now the new i.MX95. From NXP’s perspective, how do these different i.MX9 products cater to different segments and markets?
Robert: Good question. We see them catering to all the markets we focus on. If you look at factory automation, healthcare, power and energy, building management automation—because Variscite has designed across our entire portfolio, you’re really catering to all those key segments. With our portfolio, we try to address many different usage models and scale from low-power, lower price points to the highest performance we can offer within the ARM market. With the portfolio you referenced, we’re able to scale together as partners across the entire major segments of the industrial market.
Ofer: The i.MX95, the new addition to this family, is a truly scalable processor with 4 cores, 6 cores, GPU capabilities. How do you see the future of edge AI and the other features coming from this new i.MX95 platform?
Robert: Looking at the i.MX95, we’re really trying to meet the needs of edge computing. You mentioned machine learning, but let’s not forget about how you get data into the device through connectivity, and how you secure that device and data with on-chip security. The i.MX95, as you mentioned, offers up to six A55 cores running at up to 2 GHz. We’ve also included M7 and M33 cores to create a security island for SIL 2 ASIL B, providing both safety and performance.
Additionally, we’ve completely redesigned the vision pipeline with the EIQ Neutron NPU and NXP’s ISP, allowing customers to implement the right-sized version of machine learning for their devices. For getting data into the device, we’ve carefully considered networking capabilities with up to 10 GB Ethernet, PCI 3.0, and USB 2.0. We’ve looked at the chip in its entirety—facilitating high-speed data ingestion through advanced interfaces, while providing the performance and capability to process any type of data on the device itself.
Ofer: I really appreciate this interview, Robert, but more than that, we appreciate the partnership. I’m looking forward to taking things to the next level. Enjoy the rest of the show and thank you very much.
The evolution of NXP’s i.MX 9 processor family represents a significant advancement in embedded processing capabilities, particularly for edge computing applications. Variscite’s Systems on Module, based on these processors, offer engineers a spectrum of options—from efficient, cost-effective designs to high-performance platforms capable of complex AI workloads. This technical collaboration continues to deliver solutions that address the practical challenges in factory automation, healthcare, energy management, and building automation, with combined performance, connectivity, and security features that meet real-world requirements.
Discover Variscite’s complete iMX9 family here.