EDA Revenue Soars 12.7% as APAC Market Rebounds

Key Takeaways

Global EDA, semiconductor IP, and services revenue reached $5.748 billion in Q1 2026, reflecting a 12.7% increase year-over-year.
Demand for AI server chip tools drove growth, particularly in the Americas and Asia/Pacific regions.
Employment in the industry rose by 12.6%, totaling 72,544 jobs in Q1 2026.

Quarterly Revenue Insights

Worldwide revenue for electronic design automation (EDA), semiconductor intellectual property (IP), and related services hit $5.748 billion in the first quarter of 2026, marking a 12.7% increase from the same quarter in 2025. The surge has been fueled by strong demand for tools essential for creating AI server chips.

Computer-aided engineering revenues rose 15.5%, reaching $2.018 billion. Notably, Chinese sales surged by 31% to $508 million, reflecting a boost from relaxed export restrictions, up from $388 million in Q1 2025. Wally Rhines, Executive Sponsor of the SEMI Electronic Design Market Data report and CEO of Silvaco Group, noted the overall growth was notably stronger than in previous years, with a run rate surpassing $22 billion, significantly up from the previous $10 billion.

While strength was observed globally, Japan stood out as the only region to report a decline. Rhines mentioned, “If you exclude SIP, everything grew, and most of that was in the double digits.” In South Korea and India, sales remained unchanged; however, in South Korea, memory manufacturers such as Samsung and SK Hynix recorded increases in DRAM revenues, which typically do not influence design tool sales. In India’s case, the flat growth may relate more to reporting practices, as many projects involve multinational corporations that don’t segregate financials by region.

The revenue growth was categorized by market segments. IC physical design and verification revenues increased by 8.3% to $751.3 million, while PCB and MCM revenue saw a 4.8% rise to $419.2 million. SIP (System-in-Package) experienced a substantial surge of 14.1% to $2.333 billion, and services expanded by 6.5% to $226.4 million.

Geographically, the Americas recorded a growth of 10.2%, totaling $2.434 billion, while EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa) grew by 17.6% to $766.4 million. Meanwhile, Japan’s revenue fell by 9.9% to $283.1 million, contrasting with the Asia/Pacific region, which grew impressively by 17.7% to $2.264 billion.

The industry also experienced a significant increase in employment, rising by 12.6% to reach 72,544 jobs in Q1 2026. This overall growth highlights the expanding landscape for the semiconductor and EDA sectors and the rising emphasis on AI technology across various markets.

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