The security IP market is entering a phase of accelerated growth driven by OEM demand for fully integrated, certification-ready security components in semiconductor designs. According to ABI Research, rising requirements for secure Root of Trust (RoT), key provisioning, authentication, and post-quantum-ready cryptography (PQC) are influencing supplier strategies and contributing to market consolidation.
Security IP is increasingly supplied as bundled subsystems that combine cryptographic libraries, firmware, and RoT modules, often under mixed-revenue models. These offerings involve collaboration between hardware IP vendors, software stack providers, and chipmakers to create configurable platforms with consistent APIs and alignment to multiple certification standards.
Licenses remain the primary source of up-front revenue, while services traditionally a smaller portion of IP revenues now account for 10% to 30% of initial license value and feature longer-term revenue potential due to needs for crypto-agility.
Market consolidation includes acquisitions such as Synopsys integrating Elliptic Technologies and Intrinsic ID, and Cadence acquiring Secure-IC, aimed at developing vertically unified secure-element platforms. Providers including Rambus, FortifyIQ, and Xiphera are focusing on post-quantum agility, side-channel protection, and high-performance MACsec/IPsec engines for applications in AI, data centers, and IoT.
OEMs are seeking certified embedded security solutions that can be personalized for specific use cases. This requires suppliers to move beyond standalone crypto blocks toward full-stack, configurable security platforms that scale across various SoCs and support compliance with regulatory requirements through certification programs such as FIPS, CC, and SESIP.
Michela Menting, Vice President at ABI Research, stated that OEMs want certified embedded security solutions personalized to their use cases, which is transforming the IP landscape. She added that security IP is becoming a platform play, where turnkey certification and configurability represent key aspects of competition in secure semiconductor design.
These details come from ABI Research’s “Security IP: Design Integration & Pricing Strategies” report, part of the company’s Trusted Device Solutions research service. The report examines design integration and pricing approaches in the sector.
