"RISC-V Is Now" Andrea Gallo on Why 2026 Is a Pivotal Year | RISC-V Summit Europe 2026

Why It Matters

The surge of funding, standards and real silicon signals RISC‑V’s transition to mainstream hardware, reshaping data‑center, AI and consumer markets while opening fresh investment opportunities.

Key Takeaways

• $400M and $250M funding shows strong investor confidence.
• Server platform spec unifies hardware-software contracts for data‑center RISC‑V.
• RVA23 profile enables single‑target OS across multiple RISC‑V chips.
• First commercial RVA23 laptops demonstrate viable developer and consumer use.
• AWS F2 instances now host RISC‑V IP, enabling cloud‑based development.

Summary

At the RISC‑V Summit Europe in Bologna, CEO Andrea Gallo declared 2026 “the year RISC‑V is now,” highlighting unprecedented funding, new board members, and the ratification of the server platform specification.

Gallo cited $400 million invested in Scifi and $250 million in Accelera, plus a surge in strategic members such as Microsoft and TenStorrent joining as premier board members. The newly ratified server platform spec bundles core ISA extensions, peripheral standards (IOMMU, timers, message interrupts) and industry‑standard boot contracts (UEFI, ACPI), creating a single target for data‑center operating systems.

He emphasized the RVA23 profile, which consolidates mandatory extensions for high‑performance application processors, allowing one OS build to run on any compliant chip. Real‑world examples include the SpaceMit K3‑based Framework laptop and AWS’s F2 instances that now host RISC‑V IP, giving developers cloud‑native hardware‑software co‑design capabilities.

These developments move RISC‑V beyond embedded microcontrollers into mainstream server, AI edge, and consumer markets, promising faster time‑to‑market, lower licensing costs, and a new wave of venture capital interest that could reshape the semiconductor landscape.

Original Description

RISC-V International Editor James De Vile talks with Andrea Gallo, CEO of RISC-V International, immediately after his opening keynote at RISC-V Summit Europe 2026 in Bologna, Italy.

They discuss the wave of investor confidence behind RISC-V — including major funding rounds at SiFive and Axelera AI, what the newly announced Server Platform Specification 1.0 unlocks for the industry, how 2026 is already delivering on its promise as the year of RVA23 silicon, the significance of the world's first RVA23 laptop, and why Andrea believes that our old ‘RISC-V is inevitable’ slogan should be updated – because RISC-V is happening right now.

Recorded live at RISC-V Summit Europe 2026, Bologna, Italy — 9th June 2026.

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