On June 25, 2025, Professor Jason Cong delivered a keynote address titled “Democratize Chip Design” at the 62nd Association for Computing Machinery and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Design Automation Conference, the premier international event in the field of electronic design automation.
In his talk, Cong shared a vision of developing a chip design that would make them more accessible to software programmers and closes the long-standing gap between software development and hardware implementation. He proposed that with the right tools and frameworks, individuals without traditional hardware engineering backgrounds could contribute meaningfully to chip innovation.
Cong also showcased recent research advancements in collaboration with Professor Yizhou Sun’s research group. Their interdisciplinary work combines deep learning, mathematical programming, and an agentic approach within high-level synthesis environments. This integrated method represents a significant step toward simplifying and accelerating the chip design process through artificial intelligence and automation.
The keynote emphasized the growing potential of intelligent systems to reshape hardware design, making it faster, more efficient, and more inclusive. Cong’s vision points to a future where chip design is no longer limited to a specialized few, but open to a broader community of innovators.