BlackBerry has released an early access version of its QNX Software Development Platform (SDP) 8.0 for automakers and IoT systems developers. Built on the company’s POSIX compliant, real-time QNX OS, SDP 8.0 is designed to take advantage of multi-core processors, the company says.
Providing a step-change in performance while maintaining its competitive differentiator as an inherently safe and secure, POSIX compliant, real-time microkernel-based OS, the new architecture has shown an impressive 1-to-1 performance scaling factor as the number of cores increase, unprecedented for a commercial real time operating system.
With the next generation QNX OS, customers can now fully realize the performance of next generation processors and reduce their overall costs by maximizing utilization of the available compute resources, a boon for the likes of automakers whose shift towards Software-Defined Vehicles has brought an exponential amount of software-based architecture complexity.
According to BlackBerry, QNX SDP 8.0 will form the basis of it future QNX products, including QNX OS for Safety, QNX Hypervisor and QNX Hypervisor for Safety.
“The automotive industry is redefining software in the vehicle,” said John Wall, senior vice president and head of BlackBerry QNX.
“Automotive architectures are transitioning to zonal, central compute and ultimately Software Defined Vehicles. The top to bottom scalability inherent to SDP 8.0, the QNX OS for Safety and the QNX Hypervisor makes this a natural choice for automakers looking for a total car OS.”
The company says it’s also working with NVIDIA to integrate the QNX OS microkernel on the next-generation NVIDIA DRIVE Thor, which delivers 2000 TFLOPS of performance and consolidates automated driving with AI cockpit on a single centralized platform.
“The combination of our DRIVE Thor centralized computer and the new QNX OS will serve as a powerful foundation on which OEMs can build next-generation automotive systems that offer the highest levels of safety and security,” said Ali Kani, vice president of automotive at NVIDIA.
“This represents another major milestone in a nearly 20-year collaboration with BlackBerry QNX that has helped both companies move to the forefront of the automotive industry.”
The early access release of QNX SDP 8.0 is available for evaluation and product development. General availability, the company says, is scheduled for later in 2023.
