PIMIC Partners with ZillTek to Launch the Clarity NC100 Chip

January 10, 2025

News

In a new release, PIMIC, a maker of ultra-low-power AI semiconductor technology, unveiled its Clarity NC100, a Deep Neural Network (DNN)-based Environmental Noise Cancellation (ENC) chip.

This company said the chip delivers exceptional noise suppression, handling challenging environments like strong windy conditions and noisy industrial settings with a single microphone while consuming only 150μA in power. Designed with an ultra-compact silicon die, it integrates into the microphone package, saving PCB space. Its software-free design enables rapid integration of ENC functionality into edge devices.

“Developed with the latest advancements in Deep Neural Networks and PIMIC's innovative PIM (Processing-In-Memory) silicon architecture, the NC100 chip is a major breakthrough in noise cancellation technology,” said Subi Krishnamurthy, Founder and CEO of PIMIC. “It eliminates even the most challenging background noise, excelling in single-microphone setups where traditional DSP solutions fall short. Clarity NC100 opens new market opportunities by overcoming constraints of size, power, and cost, redefining noise cancellation across industries.”

Unlike traditional multi-microphone noise cancellation systems, PIMIC's Clarity NC100 chip delivers superior noise suppression using a single microphone.  This approach eliminates the need for complex multi-microphone setups, reducing system costs, power consumption, and integration challenges. The result is a clear audio experience ideal for noisy environments across diverse applications.

Target markets and applications for PIMIC's Clarity NC100 chip include:

• Gaming Headsets: Delivering clear in-game communication, even in chaotic settings.
• Surveillance Cameras: Enhancing audio quality to capture critical sound details in noisy outdoor conditions.
• Industrial Environments and Airfields: Improving communication clarity where loud ambient noise is unavoidable.
• Edge and Wearable Markets: Enabling effective noise cancellation in space-constrained, battery-powered devices.
• Robotics: Suppresses environmental noise while preserving human voices, ensuring clear communication for remote monitoring, telepresence, or public-facing robots in noisy environments. 

Smart AI Microphone with Clarity NC100 Integrated

With its compact die size and ultra-low power consumption, PIMIC's Clarity NC100 chip seamlessly integrates into a microphone package, offering a highly efficient, space-saving, and software-free solution for effortlessly adding noise cancellation to any edge application.  ZillTek, a prominent microphone manufacturer and an early adopter of Clarity NC100, is set to integrate Clarity NC100 inside of their microphone with samples available in Q1, 2025.  

“We are excited to integrate PIMIC's Clarity NC100 chip into our advanced microphone solutions,” said Joshua Yeh, CTO at ZillTek. “This collaboration enables us to deliver an AI digital microphone with environmental noise cancellation that sets a new benchmark for audio clarity, efficiency, and compact design. Together with PIMIC, we are pushing the boundaries of what's possible in smart AI microphone technology.”

The Power of Edge AI Innovation

Clarity NC100 demonstrates PIMIC's expertise in developing cutting-edge AI inference silicon with Processing-in-Memory (PIM) architecture, which enables exceptional performance with ultra-low power consumption. By integrating noise cancellation capabilities directly within a single microphone package, Clarity NC100 meets the growing demand for compact, cost-effective AI solutions in the edge AI market.