AIStorm & Tower Semiconductor Introduce Cheetah HS, World’s First Up-to-260K FPS AI-in-Imager Chip for Inspection, Robotics & Sports
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM) and AIStorm have unveiled the Cheetah HS, a groundbreaking high-speed AI-in-imager chip capable of capturing up to 260,000 frames per second. This innovative 120×80-pixel imager integrates first-layer AI capability and leverages Tower's charge-domain imaging platform combined with AIStorm's proprietary charge-domain analog AI neurons.
The Cheetah HS offers significant advantages including an adjustable frame rate, integrated LED driver, enhanced low-light performance, and dramatic cost advantages over competitors. The technology targets multiple applications including robotics, drones, manufacturing inspection, security systems, and sports analysis. The product is immediately available in both chip form and full reference-camera systems.
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM) e AIStorm hanno presentato il Cheetah HS, un rivoluzionario chip AI-in-imager ad altissima velocità in grado di catturare fino a 260.000 fotogrammi al secondo. Questo sensore da 120×80 pixel integra capacità AI nel primo livello e sfrutta la piattaforma di imaging a dominio di carica di Tower insieme ai neuroni analogici AI a dominio di carica proprietari di AIStorm.
Il Cheetah HS offre vantaggi rilevanti, tra cui frequenza di acquisizione regolabile, driver LED integrato, prestazioni migliori in condizioni di scarsa luminosità e notevoli risparmi sui costi rispetto ai concorrenti. La tecnologia è destinata a molteplici applicazioni: robotica, droni, ispezione industriale, sistemi di sicurezza e analisi sportiva. Il prodotto è disponibile immediatamente sia come chip che come sistema di riferimento completo per videocamera.
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM) y AIStorm han presentado el Cheetah HS, un innovador chip AI-in-imager de alta velocidad capaz de capturar hasta 260.000 fotogramas por segundo. Este sensor de 120×80 píxeles integra capacidad de IA en la primera capa y aprovecha la plataforma de imagen por dominio de carga de Tower junto con las neuronas analógicas IA de dominio de carga propietarias de AIStorm.
El Cheetah HS ofrece ventajas importantes, como tasa de fotogramas ajustable, controlador LED integrado, mejor rendimiento en condiciones de poca luz y ventajas de coste significativas frente a la competencia. La tecnología está dirigida a múltiples aplicaciones: robótica, drones, inspección industrial, sistemas de seguridad y análisis deportivo. El producto está disponible de inmediato tanto en formato de chip como en sistemas completos de cámara de referencia.
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM)와 AIStorm이 Cheetah HS를 공개했습니다. 이 획기적인 고속 AI-in-imager 칩은 최대 초당 260,000프레임까지 촬영할 수 있습니다. 120×80 픽셀의 이 이미저는 1층(퍼스트 레이어) AI 기능을 통합했으며, Tower의 전하(충전) 도메인 이미징 플랫폼과 AIStorm의 독자적인 전하 도메인 아날로그 AI 뉴런을 결합해 작동합니다.
Cheetah HS는 프레임률 조절, 통합 LED 드라이버, 저조도 성능 향상 및 경쟁 제품 대비 큰 비용 절감 등 여러 장점을 제공합니다. 이 기술은 로봇공학, 드론, 제조 검사, 보안 시스템, 스포츠 분석 등 다양한 응용 분야를 목표로 합니다. 제품은 칩 형태와 완전한 레퍼런스 카메라 시스템으로 즉시 제공됩니다.
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM) et AIStorm ont dévoilé le Cheetah HS, une puce AI-in-imager haute vitesse capable de capturer jusqu'à 260 000 images par seconde. Cet imager 120×80 pixels intègre une capacité d'IA au premier niveau et s'appuie sur la plateforme d'imagerie en domaine de charge de Tower, combinée aux neurones analogiques IA en domaine de charge propriétaires d'AIStorm.
Le Cheetah HS présente des avantages notables, notamment un taux d'images ajustable, un pilote LED intégré, de meilleures performances en faible luminosité et d'importants gains de coût par rapport aux concurrents. La technologie vise de multiples applications : robotique, drones, contrôle d'inspection en production, systèmes de sécurité et analyse sportive. Le produit est disponible immédiatement, aussi bien en puce qu'en systèmes caméra de référence complets.
Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM) und AIStorm haben den Cheetah HS vorgestellt, einen bahnbrechenden Hochgeschwindigkeits-AI-in-Imager-Chip, der bis zu 260.000 Bilder pro Sekunde erfassen kann. Dieser 120×80-Pixel-Sensor integriert KI-Funktionalität in der ersten Schicht und nutzt Towers Ladungsdomänen-Imaging-Plattform zusammen mit AIStorms proprietären, ladungsdomänenbasierten analogen KI-Neuronen.
Der Cheetah HS bietet wesentliche Vorteile, darunter eine einstellbare Bildrate, integrierten LED-Treiber, verbesserte Leistung bei schwachem Licht und deutliche Kostenvorteile gegenüber Wettbewerbern. Die Technologie zielt auf zahlreiche Anwendungen ab, etwa Robotik, Drohnen, Fertigungsinspektion, Sicherheitssysteme und Sportanalyse. Das Produkt ist sofort als Chip sowie als komplettes Referenz-Kamerasystem verfügbar.
- Revolutionary technology capturing 260,000 frames per second, 2,000-4,000 times faster than conventional CMOS sensors
- Significant reduction in system power requirements and bill-of-materials cost
- Immediate availability in both chip form and full reference-camera systems
- Wide market application potential across robotics, manufacturing, security, and sports analytics
- Limited resolution at 120×80 pixels
Insights
Tower's new Cheetah HS chip represents a significant technological breakthrough in high-speed imaging with on-chip AI, targeting multiple high-value industrial markets.
The partnership between Tower Semiconductor and AIStorm has yielded a potentially disruptive technology in the high-speed imaging market. The Cheetah HS achieves frame rates up to 260,000 fps — an astounding 2,000-4,000× faster than conventional CMOS sensors while dramatically reducing power consumption and system costs.
What makes this product technically remarkable is the charge-domain architecture that processes photons directly as electrical charge rather than converting to digital signals first. This approach integrates the initial AI neural network layer at the analog level, eliminating the need for expensive high-speed data converters and interface components that burden traditional high-speed cameras.
The technical specifications are impressive: 120×80-pixel resolution, programmable frame rates, integrated LED driver, enhanced low-light capabilities, and direct neural network output. While the resolution might seem modest, it's perfectly aligned with the specialized industrial applications targeted.
This technology addresses a significant barrier in machine vision systems: the prohibitive cost of ultra-high-speed cameras needed for slow-motion analysis. By making this capability more affordable, Tower and AIStorm are potentially opening new market segments across industrial inspection, robotics, security, manufacturing, and even consumer applications like sports analysis.
The immediate availability in both chip form and complete reference camera systems suggests production readiness and confidence in the technology's market viability. For Tower Semiconductor, this represents an extension of their sensor portfolio into high-value applications where their charge-domain imaging platform creates significant competitive advantages.
Charge-domain imager with on-chip neural network, provides breakthrough slow-motion vision at a fraction of the cost and power consumption of competing high-speed cameras
HOUSTON, Texas, and MIGDAL HAEMEK, Israel - August 12, 2025: AIStorm, the market leader in charge-domain solutions for edge AI, and Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM), a leading foundry of high-value analog semiconductor solutions, today announced the availability of the Cheetah HS — a high-speed, 120×80-pixel imager with first-layer AI capability that captures up to 260,000 frames per second — 2,000 to 4,000 times faster than conventional CMOS sensors. The Cheetah HS architecture is made possible by Tower’s unique charge-domain imaging platform which is leveraged by AIStorm’s proprietary charge-domain-based analog AI neurons.
By combining ultra-high-speed imaging with charge-domain AI, Cheetah HS slashes system power requirements and bill-of-materials cost for designers of robotics, drones, vibration- and structure-health monitors, high-speed security and surveillance tracking systems, manufacturing and assembly lines, barcode readers, PCB-inspection equipment, biometric unlock systems, vehicle-speed detectors, and even golf-swing analyzers.
“Many consumer and industrial applications require ultra-slow-motion analysis of real-time events to analyze performance or detect anomalies. Such solutions are very costly, and our Cheetah HS solution makes them affordable for a wide range of markets and end applications,” said David Schie, CEO of AIStorm. “Tower is a global leader in charge-domain global-shutter pixels, making them the ideal partner for the development and production of such groundbreaking products.”
“We are very pleased to see the fruits of our long term, close collaboration with AIStorm on this unique breakthrough platform of analog charge-domain embedded AI technology,” said Dr. Avi Strum, SVP and GM of the Sensors and Displays BU at Tower Semiconductor. “Its inherent low-power, low-cost, and high-performance virtues will enable a family of affordable, high-volume products in the near future.”
Key advantages of Cheetah HS
- Adjustable frame rate up to 260,000 frames per second (fps)
- Integrated LED driver (programmable up to 40 mA)
- Enhanced low light performance
- Integrated charge-domain neuron layer outputting pulse streams for downstream neural-network layers or raw high-speed video
- Dramatic cost advantage over competitors
- Lowers processing costs by capturing images quickly, leaving more time per frame for processing
- Ability to capture extremely high-speed events and analyze them in slow motion
How it works
Traditional high-speed cameras utilize expensive high-speed data converters to capture data, which separates the AI input layer from the pixels, increasing the BOM cost and necessitating high-speed connectors and interface components. Cheetah HS’s charge-domain architecture converts incoming photons to charge, computes the first neural-network layer in analog form, then outputs a pulse train that can be processed by downstream networks. The capture rate is programmable, allowing lower frame rates with faster capture times (reducing the cost of processing) or faster frame rates for accurate measurements or slow-motion analysis.
Availability
Cheetah HS is available now in both chip form as well as full reference-camera systems [aistorm.ai/cheetah].
About AIStorm
AIStorm is the leader in AI-in-sensor edge solutions for imaging, audio and biometrics. The company pioneered charge-domain processing — with more than 40 patents worldwide — which overcomes latency, optimizes power and minimizes the cost of inference and learning at the edge. AIStorm offers always-on sentry AI-in-sensor imaging solutions, high-speed imaging solutions, smart always-on solutions for audio applications, and human interface & biometric solutions. To learn more, visit aistorm.ai.
Press contact
Tim Cox, ZingPR for AIStorm | tim@zingpr.com
About Tower Semiconductor
Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM), the leading foundry of high-value analog semiconductor solutions, provides technology, development, and process platforms for its customers in growing markets such as consumer, industrial, automotive, mobile, infrastructure, medical and aerospace and defense. Tower Semiconductor focuses on creating a positive and sustainable impact on the world through long-term partnerships and its advanced and innovative analog technology offering, comprised of a broad range of customizable process platforms such as SiGe, BiCMOS, mixed-signal/CMOS, RF CMOS, CMOS image sensor, non-imaging sensors, displays, integrated power management (BCD and 700V), photonics, and MEMS. Tower Semiconductor also provides world-class design enablement for a quick and accurate design cycle as well as process transfer services including development, transfer, and optimization, to IDMs and fabless companies. To provide multi-fab sourcing and extended capacity for its customers, Tower Semiconductor owns one operating facility in Israel (200mm), two in the U.S. (200mm), two in Japan (200mm and 300mm) which it owns through its
Safe Harbor Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may vary from those projected or implied by such forward-looking statements. A complete discussion of risks and uncertainties that may affect the accuracy of forward-looking statements included in this press release or which may otherwise affect Tower’s business is included under the heading “Risk Factors” in Tower’s most recent filings on Forms 20-F, F-3, F-4 and 6-K, as were filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and the Israel Securities Authority. Tower does not intend to update, and expressly disclaim any obligation to update, the information contained in this release.
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Tower Semiconductor Company Contact: Orit Shahar | +972-74-7377440 | oritsha@towersemi.com
Tower Semiconductor Investor Relations Contact: Liat Avraham | +972-4-6506154 | liatavra@towersemi.com
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