Highlights

  • BrainChip introduced its AKD1500 SPI chip in October for microcontroller-based edge devices and embedded applications.
  • The processor supports on-device learning and can operate alongside an existing microcontroller using an SPI connection.
  • Commercial availability and initial production shipments of AKD1500 chips were announced in June 2026.
  • An earlier ASICLAND licensing agreement expanded the potential use of Akida intellectual property in custom chip designs.

BrainChip Holdings (ASX:BRN) added a new format to its Akida product family on 22 October, unveiling the AKD1500 SPI for microcontroller-based products. The component works alongside a host microcontroller rather than requiring a full redesign around a different main processor. Its intended applications include wearables, smart-home equipment, industrial sensors and other compact devices that need local artificial intelligence processing.

Local Learning Forms Part Of The Design

A key capability of the AKD1500 SPI is edge learning, which allows certain new words, sounds, users or signal patterns to be learned directly on the device. Data can remain on the product instead of being transferred to a remote service for every inference. The host microcontroller retains responsibility for ordinary device functions, while the Akida processor handles neural-network operations and returns the result to the host.

Commercial Chip Supply Began Earlier In The Year

BrainChip announced commercial availability and initial production shipments of its AKD1500 chips in June. The silicon is manufactured with GlobalFoundries using its 22 nm FD-SOI process. The company described sub-watt continuous inference and support for standalone or co-processor configurations. The October SPI product follows other available hardware, including an AKD1500 PCIe development card designed to let engineers evaluate the technology in desktop and industrial computing systems.

Licensing And Software Support Broaden Access

A May agreement with ASICLAND permits the design-services company to incorporate Akida intellectual property into custom system-on-chip proposals, with individual licensing approvals still controlled by BrainChip. Separately, the Business released a Symphony Community Akida software bundle in August to support running Akida tasks with existing CPU and GPU workloads. These arrangements address different aspects of adoption: silicon supply, custom-chip design and the developer environment.

Development Focus Remains On Integration

The AKD1500 SPI gives embedded-device designers another route to evaluate BrainChip’s technology. Management is also promoting hardware tools and intellectual-property licensing to prospective customers and design partners. Product announcements and available evaluation tools do not by themselves establish future unit sales, and commercial outcomes depend on customers completing their own product design and procurement decisions.

Stock Price Information

BrainChip Holdings shares traded at AUD 0.108 on 10 November 2026, up 2.38%. The company had a Market Capitalisation of AUD 244.66 mn.