Silicon Labs: The company's mission in 2020 is to simplify the way the Internet is connected

Silicon Labs said recently that its mission in 2020 is to simplify the way everyday devices connect to the Internet.

Silicon Labs said that in addition to planning to launch new security platforms and services in the coming weeks, the company also plans to hold its first Works With Smart Home conference.

Silicon Labs CEO Tyson Tuttle said these projects are part of the company's broad strategy to become a leader in the Internet of Things market.

Silicon Labs is a semiconductor chip design company with a total of 1,500 employees, 700 of which are located at its Austin headquarters.

In recent years, the company has been focusing on its wireless chips, which other companies use to make Internet of Things products.

The Internet of Things is a technical term that refers to non-computing devices that are connected to the Internet, such as kitchen appliances or TVs, and IoT is a common industry abbreviation for the Internet of Things.

"For Silicon Labs, it has been working in the field of the Internet of Things for a decade," said Tuttle.

Internet of Things technologies, such as home security cameras and smart thermostats, have become increasingly common, but Tuttle said the company sees opportunities to apply Internet of Things technology to industrial fields such as construction sites.

"A lot of the devices that go into the home; that's part of our business," Tuttle said. "In fact, the industrial side is a major part of the business."

Tuttle said that while the Internet of Things makes up about 60% of Silicon Labs' business, it wasn't always the direction the company was headed.

Tuttle was employee No. 10 when the company was founded in 1996, starting out as a design engineer and rising to chief technology officer in 2010.

He said Silicon Labs had made great strides and revenue in the PC and cell phone markets, but the company's leadership wanted to find more industry involvement.

"The semiconductor industry used to be able to integrate certain things and make a chip that had a particular flavor," Tuttle said. "Our industry has matured to a point where it's not just about designing the best product, but it's also about what's relevant to the customers we're talking to and the markets we're going after."

Tuttle said the Internet of Things is one of the main focuses the company has identified. Silicon Labs also has plans to make a big push into products used in communications infrastructure and those needed for current regulation devices.

The company began executing on that plan when Tuttle became CEO in 2012.

"We've moved resources, made a series of acquisitions, and introduced software capabilities," Tuttle said.

Rob Enderle, an analyst at the Enderle Group, said Silicon Labs plays a big role in the semiconductor industry. To be a leader in the IoT, Silicon Labs must be visible and productive, he said.

"This is not a market where you can do it once and for all. It really goes back to visibility. You have to be successful and you have to let others know about that success."

One of the ways Silicon Labs plans to be more visible is through the Works With Smart Home conference scheduled for September in Austin. In addition, the company has joined an initiative called "Connecting the Home Over IP." The project is led by the Zigbee Alliance, an organization dedicated to establishing industry standards for wireless technology, of which Amazon, Apple and Google are members.

"Ecosystems need to come together, and people want all devices to connect seamlessly into these ecosystems," Tuttle said.

As IoT devices become more common, security issues for those devices also need to be addressed, Tuttle added.

Tuttle didn't go into many details, including the names of the new products, only revealing that the company is preparing to launch new "silicon-to-cloud" security platforms and services this month.

Silicon Labs spokesman Dale Weisman described the products as "birth certificates" for IoT chips.

“When the ID is embedded in the chip throughout its lifecycle, you can protect the keys to unlock applications and devices,” Weisman said.

Tuttle said that bringing industry leaders together, and the company’s focus on device security, will help the entire IoT market.

Tuttle concluded: “There are a lot of global standards for IoT, and each ecosystem needs more and more companies to participate. So we are trying to lead by example, which will be the right way to build and deploy IoT.”