May 19, 2026
news
Variscite, a Platinum Partner of NXP Semiconductors, releases the SMARC-compatible VAR-SMARC-MX95 SoM built on NXP’s i.MX 95 processor, providing a scalable foundation for industrial IoT and edge AI applications. The solution features up to six Arm Cortex-A55 cores operating at up to 2.0 GHz, with dedicated Cortex-M7 and Cortex-M33 real-time coprocessors for deterministic control tasks.
Ofer Austerlitz, Variscite’s vice president of business development and sales, commented, “The VAR-SMARC-MX95 brings NXP’s latest processing and AI technology into a standardized SMARC form factor. Equally important, Variscite’s in-house manufacturing tightly controls production schedules and quality validation, ensuring stable lead times and availability to SMARC customers even in volatile semiconductor markets.”
The integrated eIQ Neutron neural processing unit (NPU) supports 2 TOPS (8 eTOPS) of AI acceleration for reliable machine learning inference at the edge. For vision capabilities, the platform includes an NXP image signal processor (ISP) with dual MIPI CSI-2 interfaces for use in smart camera systems, object detection, and vision-based inspection applications. An independent Safety Island architecture supports functional safety requirements.
At release, the SoM will have three variants that integrate NXP’s IW610, IW611, or IW612 tri-radio wireless solutions for industrial and IoT deployments. Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) for high-throughput data transfer, Bluetooth for reliable short-range connectivity, and 802.15.4 support for Thread and Zigbee protocols are available. Support for the Native Matter protocol enables seamless communication across smart building, industrial, and edge computing ecosystems, with WPA3 and chipset-level secure boot ensuring encrypted and authenticated communications for connected systems, according to a press release.
VAR-SMARC-MX8M-PLUS leverages NXP’s i.MX 8M Plus application processor and highlights an on-module Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 chip that is FIPS 140-3 Level 2 compliant. This makes Variscite the only SMARC vendor to offer this type of security. In addition to NXP’s processor-level secure boot and cryptographic acceleration, this feature protects sensitive data and encryption keys while meeting EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) requirements.
“By combining NXP’s latest i.MX application processors with Variscite’s robust SMARC platform, our customers can quickly start building secure, AI-enabled industrial and IoT solutions,” said Amanda McGregor, senior director of product management at NXP Semiconductors. “The i.MX 95 delivers high-performance computing, a dedicated real-time domain, and integrated AI acceleration on Variscite’s scalable SMARC platform.”
VAR-SMARC-MX95 is ideal for industrial automation, medical imaging, building management systems, and energy infrastructure applications.
For more information, please visit variscite.com/system-on-module-som/i-mx-9/i-mx-95/.
Chad Cox is a production editor at Embedded Computing Design. His responsibilities focus on content creation, writing and editing, and article research and development. Chad is known for covering industry news and events and interacting with various industry leaders through in-house visits and online interviews. He is responsible for distributing news through our digital footprint and social media posts, creating advertising, and producing newsletters. Embedded Computing Design Daily.
He is well-versed in various aspects of industrial computing including edge AI, IoT, processing, security, open source, and more.
Chad graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor’s degree in cultural analysis literature and a master’s degree in education.
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